Fallen Trainers
by Zangoose-Kira
Summary: Sequel and conclusion to 'Targeted Trainers', Jaylon, Hiku, and Vekra tread on dangerous ground. Will Raquaza's plan to renew Pokemon Trainers succeed or fail? Rating to T now.
1. Chapter 1, Back Home

**Fallen Trainers, sequel to Targeted trainers**

**A/N: here's a reintroduction to the characters again. Even if you read the prior 25 chapter story, read this. Anyways, there will be a slight reference to a Rin character here. I was originally planning on inserting a trainer that was pretty much me in the Pokémon world, but I found it was too obscure. I might write her/me a separate story later. For now, ignore Rin. Ok, here's intro number two.**

Hoenn, Mauville City

The brown haired boy smiled to himself. That crazy event of finding a Pokémon in the mail seemed so long ago. Now, he was a full-blown Pokémon trainer complete with a team of four Pokémon. Some were more faithful than others… (Not mentioning any names… *cough* Rain the Zangoose*cough*)

Jaylon, a boy at the age of sixteen, sat up from the couch of his aunt's house. He was in Quincy territory, even though he was a Wicklow surname. But that didn't matter; he liked his relatives well enough.

The boy was tall, but not as tall as his Uncle Jerry. The boy had a nickname of Agent J, why it stuck he never knew. He had a bandana around his forehead and many key chains at his side. All of these key chains were legendary Pokémon he needed to catch!

Jaylon glanced around the small room and spotted his cousins Ana and Mike running around with Knight the Poocheyna. Jaylon thought back to what had happened after a week.

After saving Fallabor town (sort of) and patching it up (while chasing his disobedient Pokémon), he and Hiku had been surprised to see Roxanne, the second gym leader they met but the first one they battled. The rock-type gym leader had flown over on an Aerodactyl and had offered them a ride back as well. After saying goodbye to the one-handed Lanette and the mayor, the boy and his assigned partner had flown back to their homes for a bit of chill time. After all, one couldn't save all of Hoenn on just one non-stop adventure!

Jaylon had called Hiku every day after their separation. He was really glad that the mysterious Raquaza person had paired him up with such a fantastic (though frail) partner.

Now back in his home-town, Jaylon enjoyed showing his younger cousins how to play and have a pretend fight with Pokémon. He had in his active team; Hearth- the loving female Combusken, Oan- the lazy male Gulpin, Dooma- the serious and trite female Ninjask, and his newest addition, Rain- the feisty Zangoose he could strangely understand. All Pokémon except for Rain were loyal and order-followers.

Knight the Poocheyna had been his, but he couldn't seem to train him like he could the others. He reasoned that the black wolf Pokémon would like life better as a pet. Knight was now his cousin Ana's responsibility. Outside, the puppy barked and wagged its black tail and watched the kids wave around a stick. It was a fun thing to watch children play with Pokémon. If only Rain the Zangoose could behave well long enough to meet his family.

Agent J was living in a dangerous time; Pokémon trainers were strangely disappearing for no known reason. He had had a brush with a strange man who Rain had insisted wanted to attack him. Hiku had heard the story about the shard of meteor being a tracker and she threw her gift into Meteor falls as well. They didn't know why Prof. Cosmo had given them a tracker, unless he didn't know it himself. But even so, it was harder and harder to gain trust from anybody.

Jaylon also remembered that day when he got his starter Pokémon Torchic along with Dooma, a slightly disgusting Nincada at the time. These two Pokémon had been given to him by a strange Raquaza person. All he knew was that Raquaza was a girl and only appeared through letters. Somehow Roxanne had known _about _her, but knew nothing more.

Jaylon sat back in the couch. His aunt and uncle were off working and his cousins were playing outside. He had the house all to himself. _Maybe I should call Vekra… She was my teammate for an hour or so._ Vekra had been assigned to the Hoenn team, but had abruptly fled. She didn't care about a team and her very attitude infuriated him. He decided against it. _Maybe she'll be ok without me bugging her._

The brown haired boy rose from the couch and stretched out. Maybe he would take a stroll around the town after Aunt Linda and Uncle Jerry got back. He flipped on the TV and saw a Smoke the Ursarang commercial. "Only you can prevent Hoenn from burning!" the bear pointed out of the screen and tipped its hat. Jaylon smiled as he thought back to his thoughts about the package that started him on the quest.

Seeing nothing good on to watch, he flipped it to a news channel and went to the door that led to the backyard. He froze, hearing familiar words come from the report.

"Residents in Mauville will watch as the crazy coot that's been eating up all the electricity is hauled off to Sunny Beaches. Sunny Beaches is an asylum in Slateport that has agreed to take in the crazy old man who should have gone to a retirement home long ago. This man is named Watson, former gym leader of Mauville. The gym that he occupies will be turned over to the region of Hoenn and used for more practical purposes than to use electricity for Pokémon training." The twenty or thirty year old reporter shook his head, as if showing his disgust at the waste.

Jaylon jumped nearly out of his pants. But Watson was a good man; he protected Mauville from invading Pokémon before. And it wasn't too easy, due to Mauville's central location. Jaylon Wicklow himself had seen what happens to a town with no trainers or gym leaders to protect it. Zangeese and Sevipers had ravaged Fallabor unopposed! He had to see what was happening to Watson!

…..

Hiku smiled and stroked her little Mudkip named Nano. She was visiting home in Oldale. She had hugged her mother and father and even her nerdy twin brother when she had returned. She had experienced a large helping of what being a trainer meant; and not all of it had been pleasant. She had told her parents about the gruesome fights that Zangeese and Sevipers went through, and about the general confusion of Gym Leaders disappearing and being restricted.

After that, she had showed off her team of three. She loved Nano the Mudkip the best, followed by Akama the Kirlia, and then followed by Tamaki the terrifying Shroomish. Tamaki had been a gift from Raquaza; a distressing gift that scared her to a groveling mess. A Shroomish had attacked her in the past and she had not been comfortable around Shroomishes ever since. Then, Raquaza had the nerve to give her one to train! But Tamaki was a serious, good Pokémon, so it didn't feel so alarming to train him.

In her journey, she had missed a lovely trip to Fortree with her family. Oh well, if she found a flying type Pokémon and trained it, it could fly her around much faster than walking. She could fly to Fortree whenever she wanted then! Hoenn was too untamed to drive cars around in.

Hiku Turret was a raven-haired girl that always wore cute little Pokémon hats. Today she wore a hand-made Mudkip hat made by the family Pokémon; Chammy the Medicham.

She laughed as Nano the Mudkip poked at her hat once again, checking to see whether it was a real Mudkip or not. "Kip, kip?" it chirped.

Hiku smiled and rubbed her Pokémon under the chin. If only training Pokémon didn't involve traveling and gruesome fights and terrible people. After all, Professor Cosmo had given them a tracking device that could have gotten them snatched! Who could be trusted nowadays?

Suddenly, her Pokénav rang. Nano jumped at the noise. Hiku smiled and picked up the phone. "Hi, this is Hiku!" she said happily, hoping it was Jaylon.

"Nice to meet you, I'm Rin," came back a female voice.

Hiku jumped. That wasn't her teammate! "Rin? I've never heard of you before. How'd you get my number?" This was slightly creepy.

"Oh, sorry," the other girl apologized, "I just had your number in this Poké-ma-thingy and thought about calling a Hoenner. I tried the Vekra number, but it didn't pick up."

"Who are you?" Hiku frowned. Nano growled in response to her fear.

"I'm Rin, a new trainer from Sinnoh." The voice tried to sound friendly. "A weird guy dressed up as a Dragonite gave me this bag of trainer goodies on the bus and now I'm a trainer. Weird huh?"

Hiku wasn't a cold person. She asked politely, "You have a Pokémon?"

"Yeah, sort of… my family rescued a stray Riolu from the streets but Frost, the Riolu, doesn't seem all that friendly. Let me guess, you have a rare Hoenn starter?"

"Kip!" Nano talked to the phone just like Hiku was doing. Why couldn't he talk like a human to a mechanical thing that made weird noises?

"Oh, a Mudkip! That's a good choice. It'll be really handy to travel around with it being a surfing Pokémon and growing up with a dual ground type…" The voice paused and seemed flustered. "Oops, sorry for keeping you. I just wanted to meet a Hoenner before I cruised over there. I'll be in Lilycove, I think, in a week. Thanks for talking." Rin said her goodbyes to Hiku and Nano before hanging up.

Hiku looked at her Pokémon and said to herself, "I guess I met a person from Sinnoh, and that she'll be in Lilycove in a week or so… I think I can trust her, she rescued a Pokémon from being a stray… I wonder what a Riolu is."

"Mudkip kip," Nano chirped and swatted at her hat.

…

Vekra Ashcroft watched in surprise as the TV cameras and reporters swarming around her. But they were not at all interested in her achievements; no, not _yet_. They all watched the fat old guy named Watson (dressed in a strait jacket) being dragged out of his gym. The old man in question had given her a fantastic battle earlier in the week, but Vekra had beaten him with her new battle-hardy Trapinch and Beldum. These two Pokémon were purchased, not caught. But that was alright, people bought Pokémon all the time, right?

Vekra was now in Mauville, unwittingly staying in the same town as her hated acquaintance Jaylon. She and her traveling companion Forte hadn't found the time to spend to get away from the pleasant town. But now, the gym leader was being hauled off in a straightjacket. Maybe the time to leave was coming soon.

Sure, Watson was a bit eccentric, but hauling him off like this seemed wrong. But what could Vekra do? This was not a federal offence, just a wrong thing to see. The last thing she would do would be to rush in front of the cameras and blurt out that she was a trainer. No, that would be suicide.

Forte, a tall, gangly boy with tanned skin, watched at her side. He held his Makuhita up over the crowd for it to see. This Makuhita was only a contest goer, not a combatant. Vekra thought them both wimps, but needed them around to buffer any fury from this unknown person only known as Raquaza. If she had a partner, then she wouldn't get bossed around.

Little did she know that they both couldn't stand each other, Forte just had too big a heart to tell her it though. He also had too big a heart to let a poor little Wurmple stay hurt in the big wide world. He had taken it in and it had hastily evolved into a white cocoon to protect itself.

Watson called out angrily over the cameras and reporters. "You don't know what yer doing! You haul me away and New Mauville will go up in smoke! I warn ya!"

Vekra sighed and rolled her eyes. This day was going just great!

….

Caprico was a young boy at the age of eleven. Even though he was old enough to be a trainer, he hadn't taken up the challenge. How could he in this day and age? He was short for his age and his head was covered in long locks of navy blue hair. He had blue eyes to match and a black school uniform. He glanced behind him and smiled slightly.

Caprico was the younger brother of Uchiha (codename 'Latias'), a trainer that Raquaza had chosen to send to Johto. He had received a letter from his sister and called the number on the letter. After that, he had been called up to travel from New Bark Town to Cherrygrove town. It wasn't far, and the Johto weather was fair.

For the trip, he had taken his Pokémon and the delivery Gengar. His sister's Gengar was a huge ghost type Pokémon that looked very concerned instead of mischievous (like most Gengars). The other companions were gifts from his sister; she had traveled to Hoenn and returned with a beautiful egg. The second he had touched it, it burst open and twin Zangeese emerged. He named the girl Pisces and the boy twin Gemini. These two were his entertainment, his responsibility, his pride and joy.

The three Pokémon behind him called happily. Pisces jumped on her brother and playfully tugged at his ear. Gemini fought back with his tiny black claws and shook her off. It was evident at the young age that the girl Pisces was stronger physically, but Gemini was faster. Even though the little Zangeese were twins, Caprico could tell them apart.

After the playful young Pokémon trudged the large ghost Pokémon, still holding to its letter with a tight grip. Pecha the Gengar mumbled a call, but it was far from happy. Caprico could understand why it was down, he felt it himself. He was going to Cherrygrove to talk with a strange person to see if his sister had disappeared or died. Either way, it was bad news for him and his family.

Pisces and Gemini continued to play and catch up with his pace. Pisces growled happily and raced her twin brother to Caprico. Gemini took her challenge and both red and white Pokémon careened towards the young human. Gemini ran too fast and bowled into Caprico. Pisces couldn't stop in time and fell into the human as well. The two Pokémon and boy sat in the grass, laughing.

Pecha glared down at the two rascals. "Gar! Gen-gen-Gengar," he hastily corrected the happiness.

"Zangoose, goose!" Gemini retorted and shook his fur.

Pisces agreed with her brother. "GOOSE!"

"Gar Gengar gen-gen," the angry Pokémon growled back and floated off the ground. It pointed to the west through the forest and emphasized, "GAR!"

Caprico didn't know what they were talking about. "Look, they are just kids. Let up on them a little, Pecha."

"Zan!" Gemini purred against his arm. Pisces mirrored her brother.

Pecha the Gengar glared, its red and black eyes intensifying its fury at not being taken seriously. It waved the letter frantically, as if it held the secrets to Uchiha's whereabouts. "Gen-gar!"

Caprico got back to his feet and petted his twin Pokémon on their heads. "Ok, we can't be playing around so much, we've got to meet this weird boss of my sister's." he followed the ghost's finger and walked faster to please the highly experienced Pokémon. To anger a level seventy Pokémon was not the best choice for a long life or a happy life for that matter. It was rumored that Gengars could twist your mind and cause you a ton of mental pain to make up for the lack of physical abilities.

Cherrygrove was right around the next corner. Caprico forgot the dire situation and ran to the pleasant beach, racing his Zangeese to the waters. Gemini reached the sea first. He happily splashed around in the salty waves and scared a few Krabbies in the process.

Pisces catapulted into the lukewarm water and scared even more Pokémon away with her splashing. The twins yowled happily and splashed each other with the salty waves.

Caprico was about to join them in the carefree playing, but he caught a strange sight in the corner of his eye. He saw a flickering flame and a bright spot of green in the distance. He raised his arm to his face to shade the sun out of his vision. He saw more clearly a Charmeleon standing by a woman dressed head to foot in green. Was this kooky person his correspondence?

The woman in green saw him and walked to him as quickly as her tight dress would allow. As she came closer, Caprico could see small yellow circles covering her dress, in a design he had never seen before. It was as if it was in a Pokémon pattern, as if she was in Pokémon cosplay. But Caprico didn't know what Pokémon she was supposed to be.

At her side appeared a man dressed as a yellow and heavy-set Dragonite. Another man joined the squad, dressed in white and blue. The three outrageously dressed individuals walked closer. As they did, the twin's playing ceased. They could tell that these three were strong and to be feared. Pecha floated apathetically behind the young blue-haired boy.

The Dragonite-dressed man cleared his throat and started the meeting. "You are Caprico, Latias' younger brother?"

Before the boy could answer for himself, the scrawny man dressed as a foreign Pokémon took the answer. "Of course he's her brother. Can't you see the resemblance? Besides, he has two Zangeese, that more proof that he is her brother. You remember how involved she was in the translation…"

"Shut up, Latios," the bearded man ground out. "Anyone can own a Zangoose and have hair dyed blue."

Caprico didn't know what was going on, but he knew something. "Hey, you're familiar, white and blue guy. Didn't I meet you earlier with my sister? But I thought your name was DJ?"

The Latios man smiled and looked slightly embarrassed.

The older man with the gruff voice raised his bushy eyebrows. "That's right, perhaps you are the right person…" the old Dragonite-man stepped forward and pointed at the Gengar behind him. "Is that your sister's Pokémon?"

Caprico stared at the lady in the middle. She hadn't spoken yet. "Sure, yeah, it's my sister's. It had a letter. Do you want to read it?"

"To be extra sure…" the older man pulled out a Pokéball and threw it up in the air. A flash of red light lit up the beach and a large bird materialized. The Pidgeot flapped its wings and landed to the sand. It called out with wings outstretched.

"Gar, gen-gen-gar!" Pecha responded and ran to hug the bird. Even though they were both males, they knew each other well as teammates.

Oran the Pidgeot chirped and began to squawk rapidly in Pokéspeak to his team member.

The Dragonite man smiled and his white mustache quivered. "Bingo, we've got Oran and Pecha. Two letters out of a possible six have been found."

Caprico watched in awe as the two huge Pokémon began to talk earnestly. How did his sister raise her Pokémon so expertly? They both had to levels 70 or above! She must have become an expert trainer while away from home.

He jumped as the lady in green and yellow circles spoke up. Her face was covered in a helmet, obscuring her face. "So, Caprico, would you like to find out about your sister? What she did under my protection and help, what she did in Fallabor Town in Hoenn, and what caused all of this confusion to start?"

Caprico nodded his blue head. His twin Zangeese nodded with him as if playing a game of mimicry.

"You will not like all of it, but you must know. You are kind of young, but you might have to take her place. But don't worry; I think I've got a partner in mind for you. She can't seem to like any partner so far and she lives in Hoenn. But you might be able to sway her." Raquaza smiled slowly.


	2. Chapter 2, Showdown

**Chapter 2**

Jaylon pushed through the crowd hastily. He had to see what was going on! He heard an old man yelling out at the crowd and made for the call. He was finally able to see an old guy with a full head of grey hair and in a strait jacket being hauled down to a van.

The brown haired boy watched as after him a Manetric in a muzzle was led out. Was this old guy an electric leader? Jaylon had known this old guy for his places on honor at the mayor's announcements and other city functions, but he had never seen Watson's Pokémon before.

Jaylon could only watch the coot being loaded into the van, along with his Manetric. The door slammed on them and the van began to rattle off the Sunny Beaches in Slateport City. The reporters began to talk quickly to their cameras, fervent on getting the report in first.

The boy observed the barbaric actions of publicizing this injustice. Watson had been hauled off and the reporters were cheering. They didn't understand that a trainer and gym leader was a protector of people and a mediator to Pokémon.

Suddenly, he jumped and shuddered at the same time. He just saw an old team-mate standing by, being interviewed by one of the barbarians! Vekra had shown her face again. Jaylon clenched his hands in rage. She had deserted them and had never said one kind word to him. After this crowd left, he'd challenge her to a battle! She deserved nothing better than to be taught a lesson!

Agent J watched the traitor talk about her knowledge of Watson and why he was slightly insane. She finished the interview with a serious glare. After the camera flicked off, Vekra asked the reporter a question. The female reporter shrugged her shoulders and said in her loud reporting voice, "Why do you care? It'll be knocked down eventually after all the power generators are taken out."

The blonde girl shrugged and turned to a tall lanky youth with a chunky Makuhita.

The crowd was thinning and Jaylon saw his chance. He strolled up, holding his anger the best he could. He neared her and placed his hand gruffly on her shoulder. He whispered in her ear, "It's about time I saw you again!" Agent J let every single ounce of hate heard in his statement.

Vekra whipped around quickly and angrily. She pulled out a Pokéball before she realized who was talking to her. She hid her anger in her face as well. "Oh, hi," She growled hostilely.

The gangly boy gaped in surprise. "Vekra, who's dis guy?" he was tall and very loud.

Jaylon glared at Vekra with hatred. "I can't pass up this opportunity; lets fight each other's Pokémon and see if following the right orders was the best idea!" he whipped out Oan's Pokéball, ready to call out his Gulpin.

Forte was utterly confused and looking between both of them to see if they could hint at what was going on.

Vekra laughed coldly. Jaylon swore he saw icicles hanging in her mouth from her icy soul. "You don't have a chance in high heaven of beating me with your pathetic Pokémon."

"Try me!" Agent J called out Oan. The green blob plopped on the Mauville cobbles and blinked its small eyes sleepily. Oan immediately felt his trainer's hate and thought to feel the same way toward any Pokémon that appeared.

Vekra pointed at the blob and laughed. "You call that a Pokémon? It's a living blob! You can't ever hope to amount to anything with that stupid Pokémon on your team!"

Oan puffed out indignantly.

Agent J didn't agree with her. "Oh yeah, call out a Pokémon and show me what it's got!"

"Why are we some violent all of the sudden?" Forte bellowed and held up his hands. His Makuhita thumped to the ground and watched the small Gulpin wait patiently.

"I've got to show up a snotty, naïve kid that calls himself an agent!" Vekra twirled her Pokéball in a show of dexterity.

"Just get the fight started already, or I might tell Oan here to spit some lovely sludge all over your trendy clothes!" Jaylon threatened. His rage for her was so complete that he didn't care about being seen as a trainer or care about Watson's fate. He wanted to smash her to the ground for all her snootiness.

"I'll send out a Pokémon who has a weakness to poison and still beat you!" She finally chose her Pokémon and it emerged out in the customary flash of red. This Pokémon looked slightly like Zuni the Treecko, but a bit older and with a long leaf on top of its head. The Pokédex beeped in his bag and read, "Grovyle…" the rest he didn't pay any attention to.

Zuni the Grovyle hadn't lost its quirkiness. He jumped up and down and tried to blow a tune of his leaf on his head. He only produced a spitting sound before he gave up and bowed happily.

"You evolved your starter too? Oan can totally take on a Grovyle; all he has to do is poison him." Jaylon smirked. Even though the Grovyle was impressive, he knew that Oan could win.

"Ok, fight!" Vekra snapped and pointed towards the blob on the ground. "Zuni, use leaf-blade!"

Jaylon ordered Oan to spit up a sludge attack.

Zuni dashed forward with amazing speed. Within seconds of the ordered attack, he was slicing at Oan's blubbery skin with the leaves at his arms. The blows glanced off the slow Gulpin and didn't cause a whole lot of damage, but the constant jiggling of his skin stopped Oan from aiming his sludge right. A blob of purple goo flew over and began to dissolve a section of the street.

Zuni the Grovyle jumped back and grinned. Jaylon could tell that the Grovyle's trainer was rubbing off on him; he had a cold glitter in his eye. The green gecko Pokémon waited for the confused Gulpin to attack.

Oan blinked and tried to control its still jiggling blubber. It frowned and spat out a small blob of sludge. Zuni saw the attack and nimbly leapt out of the way. Zuni jumped on Oan's head and began to stomp right and left on the Pokémon's skull.

The small Gulpin whimpered in pain under the weight. It suddenly yawned; its huge mouth unhinging to reveal its full capacity. Zuni the Grovyle slid off and regarded the opponent Pokémon from the back. The yawn attack had missed.

Without orders, the lithe gecko Pokémon leapt in front of the open mouthed Gulpin and fired a 'bullet-seed' attack into the gaping maw. The stinging seeds began to fill up the maw.

Oan winced and closed his mouth and tried to digest the seeds. Maybe they would taste good…

"Oan, split them back out at the Grovyle! Cover them with sludge!" Jaylon cleverly called out to his Pokémon. Oan forgot about eating the seeds and opened his puckered mouth slightly. He forced out the seeds with a slight covering of poison.

Zuni had heard the rival command and had begun jumping about to dodge the projectiles. None of the poison seeds hit the quick gecko Pokémon. Zuni smiled and launched himself back in range. He sliced at the blubbery opponent again, with little luck on hurting him.

Oan was too slow to inflict any damage either.

Jaylon knew it was going to be a draw, so he dutifully called back Oan.

"What are you doing? Neither of them has fainted!" Vekra demanded. She was clearly used to an all-knockout type of battle.

"The fight will be a draw; I just want to spare Oan from the long fight that will end up pointless." Jaylon smiled haughtily. She didn't respect her Pokémon! He bet that if she had been a death's doorstep, being attacked by a Zangoose like he had, she wouldn't have a loyal Pokémon to defend her! "Return Zuni and we can continue this match for all of our Pokémon."

"You've got four Pokémon?" She narrowed her eyes. Zuni tilted his head, as if eager to meet new Pokémon to play with.

"Yep!" Jaylon declared and sent out his second Pokémon. He chose Dooma, his quiet Ninjask. "I bet you though I'd never do anything useful with a bug, but here it is. She's super-fast!" he bragged over Dooma. The black and golden bug waved its claws modestly.

The blonde girl smiled wickedly. "You still have that weak Pokémon that this stupid Raquaza gave us? I got rid of my Geodude once I got in this town!" She flung the second Pokéball in the air, this one a specialty design.

Vekra's second member on her team was a battle worn Trapinch. It was orange and had the biggest head possible for any Pokémon. It had stars for eyes and it had tiny little bug-looking feet to keep it up. The Pokédex beeped again, but Jaylon ignored it again. He didn't need facts to know how to beat this one; he could depend on his Pokémon for that.

Zuni danced around the Trapinch happily. "Gro!" it croaked.

Vekra hastily returned her dancing Pokémon.

Forte watched in amazement at his second witnessed battle, his first being Vekra's showdown with Watson. This new guy certainly didn't like Vekra and fought with a vengeance, but he knew when to give up for his Pokémon. Was there a right way to battle Pokémon, or were there many ways?

Agent J cheered on his insect Pokémon. "Go on now, Dooma. Show snobby Vekra what speed means!" it disturbed him that she had gotten rid of her Geodude. Had she released it back to the wild? _But I thought we were supposed to raise the Pokémon we didn't like as well as the ones we did… clearly, she wasn't going to listen to this Raquaza person._

His Ninjask faithfully began to dart around. Slow at first, but increasing speed little by little. Jaylon had learned that the longer Dooma fought, the faster she would get.

The small orange Pokémon blinked slowly at the flying Pokeomn. Vekra had chosen the wrong Pokémon for this match; it was ground-type, and had no effect on flying-type Pokémon.

Vekra was unabashed. She pointed to the battle field and dramatically called for the Trapinch to bite its opponent. The small Pokémon sat patiently, not once moving.

Jaylon didn't know what was going on. He instead ordered Dooma to aim a slash attack at it.

"Now, Trapinch!" Vekra yelled as the small black bug zipped in for a slash attack.

Quicker than he could track with his eyes, the big-headed Pokémon launched into action. The orange Trapinch burst forward and nearly swallowed Dooma with its huge jaws before she could dodge. Dooma's claws hung out of the huge orange jaws and Jaylon winced as he heard a crunch of broken exoskeleton.

"No! Dooma!" Jaylon ran to the Trapinch and tried to pry its maw open. The bug-like Pokémon refused to move. The golden claw sticking out of the jaws twitched. Enraged at the brutality, Jaylon screamed at Vekra, "What are you doing? Let me get her out of your Pokémon's mouth!"

The blonde girl sneered down at him. "Oops, it looks like Raquaza gave you a faulty Pokémon!"

Jaylon ground his teeth. Without a different choice, he pulled out his Pokéball and returned his Ninjask. Hopefully she would be ok in her Pokéball. After this, he would run to the Pokémon center for Dooma.

"Looks like I win this round. Do you want to send out your darling Combusken to beat up this one?" She laughed.

The Trapinch clacked its jaws, wondering where it opponent had gone.

"No way, I want a single one-on-one match. Return that beast!" Jaylon stepped back within the invisible line of skirmish. He glanced at his two remaining Pokémon. He could use his darling starter, or he could test of Rain in her first battle.

The blonde girl rolled her eyes and returned her mega-strong Pokémon. "You take all the fun out of battles. You should have seen me against Watson, we kicked serious butt!" She pointed at the gangly boy on the sidelines, "Forte saw the whole thing, didn't you?"

The tanned boy nodded, but held a sick expression on his face. Jaylon couldn't blame him. He didn't know that she had picked up a sidekick. Maybe when he won the next match, he could taunt her about it.

The brown haired boy called out his third Pokémon. "I choose you, Rain!"

Rain the Zangoose appeared in front of him. The white and red Pokémon casually looked around and observed the human girl standing with a Pokéball in her hand. "Goose Zan-Zangoose-goose, goose Zan, Zan [What is this crap? Is this a bloody battle?]"

"Yes, Rain, this is your first battle with me as your trainer!" Jaylon acted happy, even though rage was burning in his heart.

"Goose-goose-goose Zan [You smell of hate.]" the Zangoose observed.

"What is this, are you inferring that you can understand that Pokémon?" Vekra glared. She threw out her third choice, a cylindrical blue metal-looking Pokémon that had one red eye. "My Beldum can crush your new Zangoose!"

"Beldum, the Iron Ball Pokémon…" the Pokédex chirped.

The metal leg-looking Pokémon hovered in the air, patiently waiting for an attack.

"Ok Rain, you understand how a battle works? I tell you what move to use, and you obey, got it?" Jaylon smiled at his speaking Pokémon.

"Goose, goose Zan, Zan, Zan-an Gooooose[Since when did I agree to this?]" Rain spat back, her anger rising to match his own. Her white fur began to rise, making her look bigger than just four feet tall. She took several steps in a circle and ended facing her trainer instead of the intended opponent, Beldum.

"Why are you talking to your Pokémon? Order it to fight!" Vekra Ashcroft was growing impatient. "I want to show off my new Pokémon!"

"Fine, gosh…" Jaylon rolled his eyes at his former teammate. "Rain, kick that Beldum's butt… if it has a butt that is. I don't know; it just looks like a leg to me." Jaylon jumped in shock at the murderous look from the blonde girl. "Ah! Ok, use a 'quick-attack'!"

Rain gave a wicked grin and held up her long, black claws. "Zangoose Zan [Of course I will…]" She rose to her back two legs: a sign of aggression.

"Rain, you do know that you attack the Beldum, right?" Jaylon stepped back and held up his hands.

The white and red Pokémon smiled, showing its pointed teeth. She hissed and launched herself with amazing speed at him. Jaylon yelled as his own Pokémon attacked him. He didn't cower for long; he fought back like he did in the Pokémon Center in Fallabor. He grabbed the red arms of the Zangoose on top of him and made sure that she wouldn't rip into his flesh.

Vekra glowered. "Not only does he send out a disobedient Pokémon, he fights it himself. Beldum, I think we are being insulted. Use 'take-down' on the both of them."

The Beldum dully obeyed. It hovered with its magnetism and sent itself speeding at the white Pokémon and human underneath. It knew that the move 'take-down' was a move that caused recoil. It didn't like it, but that was frankly the only move in its arsenal.

The metal leg Pokémon collided with the human and Pokémon, sending both sprawling. The Beldum flinched as it was hurt as well from the blow.

Jaylon rolled on the cobble-ground, and then came to a stop. _Ouch, did she just hit me with a Pokémon attack?_ He really hated Vekra! The brown haired boy looked up and saw Rain. She was standing on her back two legs and raising her claws high in the air. But this time, she was hissing obscene curses at the Beldum. The boy smiled to himself. Maybe this Zangoose wasn't completely un-trainable!

Rain hissed once more and ran at the blue metal thing with a powerful attack. She slashed her long claws at the Beldum's side, using a high powered 'slash' attack.

The blow did little to the metal Pokémon, not even a scratch was made!

Rain jumped back and began to cradle her smarting claws. Had she swiped any harder on that Pokémon, and her claws would have been shattered on impact. It had much too hard a covering to puncture.

Vekra laughed at the cat-ferret's pain. "Your Pokémon is hardly trained at all!" She addressed the trainer, "And what's more, it can't even put a dent in Beldum's armor! Maybe you should forfeit this one, just like last time."

Jaylon stood to his feet and dusted himself off. "What do you think Rain?" he ground his teeth in frustration.

The female Zangoose hissed some nasty curse words and she yowled out a blood-lusting cry. In other words, she was far from over! Rain attacked once more, but instead of swiping at the Beldum's armor, she aimed at the only weak spot it could have, the eye!

The metal Pokémon saw the evil intent and hovered higher in the sky to avoid becoming blind. It might have been a metal and machine-looking Pokémon, but it had feelings too! It didn't want to get its eyes gouged, so it hovered in fear.

"Get down there and give it a 'take-down', Beldum! Come on, I didn't get you just for you to hover like a balloon!" Vekra ordered.

Beldum looked down at the Zangoose below it. It heard her say, _Come on, your trainer says! If you get within inches of me, you will lose your one eye_! Beldum didn't listen to Vekra, it stayed up in the sky, happy to still see.

Jaylon saw the dilemma and smiled. This round he would win! "Forfeit your Pokémon, Vekra. Your Pokémon doesn't want to be blinded by Rain."

"What do you mean? I'm not giving up! Beldum, get the Zangoose!" she shouted.

Forte glanced at his Makuhita. The little chubby Pokémon looked back quizzically. "Do ya think this is what Pokémon battles are all about; maiming the other? Maybe it's a good thing we only do contests." The gangly teen watched the stalemate in horror. "I'd hate to fight I thing that threatened to take out my eyes."

The Beldum finally gave in to its trainer's demands. It hastily modified its magnetism to let it fall to the ground instead of repelling against it. The Beldum let itself fall claws first. As a second precaution, it closed its lone eye as if the black, wimpy skin would be good enough protection from a Zangoose's claw.

Beldum plummeted to the ground, missing the Zangoose due to its eye being closed. Rain hissed triumphantly and raised her claws for the maiming blow.

The metal Pokémon opened its eye to see what had happened, then it froze, eye wide open in fear. It couldn't move and it watched as the black claw engulfed its vision.

Vekra gasped as she finally saw what the Zangoose was planning, but it was too late for her to do anything. No, her custom ordered rare Pokémon couldn't be wounded like this!

In a blink of an eye, a miraculous thing happened.


	3. Chapter 3, The Winner

**Chapter 3**

Jaylon had run from his spot and had grabbed Rain from the back. He held her claws centimeters away from striking the red Beldum eye. Rain hissed furiously and fought to get the blow in. The Beldum was too shocked to move from its spot.

Vekra gaped at the weirdo's tenacity. He was stopping his own Pokémon from attacking. How many other trainers did that?

"Return your Beldum, or it won't ever be able to fight again." Jaylon groaned out. The amount of power he was fighting was incredible. Rain hissed and fought to regain control of her own claws, inching closer to gouge. Jaylon cried out in pain. "Hurry, I can't hold her forever!"

Vekra didn't like losing a match, but she didn't want to have her rare Pokémon unable to ever battle. With the most time possible, she drew out her Pokéball and returned it in the flash of red light. She had lost that round.

Jaylon released his Zangoose with a gasp of air. Rain fell forward, slashing at thin air. The cat-ferret turned on her trainer, irate and frustrated. "Goose Zangoose Zan, Zan goose-goose [You wanted me to win, so why did you stop me?]"

"You shouldn't fight to kill, Rain. Fighting Sevipers was bad enough, but this is a trainer battle. People care about their Pokémon and don't want their eyes plucked out." Jaylon gasped for air and rubbed his sore arms.

Rain shoved her face in his and snorted. "Zan-an goose Zangoose goose-goose-goose Zan-Zan Zangoose [You just don't understand the art of fighting! You are not fully grown and you don't yet understand, but I am not fully grown and yet I do understand.]"

Agent J sighed and pulled out the Pokéball reserved for Rain. "Ok, you won the match, get back inside and I'll treat you to some food or what not."

The Zangoose hissed, but disappeared in the Pokéball.

Jaylon sat up and looked at Vekra. He kept his expression blank and tried to read hers. Was she grateful for his intervention, or was she mad for losing?

"Ok, your theatrics are over, bring out your final Pokémon." The blonde said bitterly. She couldn't believe it, this weirdo was talking to the Zangoose like it understood him and he understood it back. But that wasn't possible! No human can understand word for word what a Pokémon says!

Jaylon didn't have to call out his last Pokémon; Hearth came out all on her own. The yellow bird chirped happily and waved to Agent J. "Comb-comb Combusken!" she called.

Vekra chose her last as well; this one was a scrawny Wingull. It shrieked in its gull-voice and flapped its way-too-big wings.

Jaylon laughed. "Wow, we must have similar tastes in Pokémon or something. We sent out our green Pokémon first, and then our bug-looking ones, then our strong red eyed ones, and now our birds!"

Vekra smiled back. "But my bird is water-type and yours is fire-type. I'm going to win this match."

"We'll see. If I win this one, what will we do for the tie-breaker?" the brown haired boy giggled, as if his faith in Hearth alone could win it over type advantage. What a naïve little kid!

"We'll discuss that if you somehow pull it off. Now, Wingull, use 'water-gun'!" Vekra started the battle with a command. The small gull Pokémon rose into the air and spat water down at the fire-bird. Hearth was too slow to dodge and got doused with the stinging water.

"Hearth! Show them your stuff, use 'return' attack!" Jaylon cried desperately.

The blonde girl scoffed. "What's that going to do? It returns itself to the Pokéball? That's one handy attack!" Sometimes this boy made no sense!

Hearth jumped out of the stream of water and crouched down. She went through her memories of Jaylon and drew on the energy of the good times. These memories were abundant, and she felt a huge surge of power coursing through her body. With a defiant call, the Combusken raised its clawed hand and jumped to strike the airborne opponent.

The Wingull flapped its wings and dodged the attack quickly.

Hearth wasn't done; she landed back to the ground and jumped a second time, the power still strong in her. The Wingull flapped its wings once again and soared out of reach.

Jaylon realized that this Pokémon would be very good at dodging physical attacks, but would it be able to avoid special attacks? "Hearth, use 'ember' attack!" he called as back-up to her fighting.

"'Water-gun', Wingull," Vekra countered.

Hearth halted her attack, waiting for the water-gun to spray before her own attack was sent. Hearth the Combusken trilled and jumped in a feint.

The surprised Wingull spat out the water preemptively. This weak stream of liquid hit Hearth, but not too hard.

It was the Combusken's turn to unleash its fire. Hearth, still in the air, opened her mouth and sent out a flaming tirade of burning coals. But this was more than just an ember attack; it was coupled with the unused power of 'return'. The searing flames engulfed the gull and began to burn through the protective oils that prevented from harm from fire.

Wingull flapped its wings in hopes to put out the fire, but only succeeded in giving the fire more oxygen to burn. The Wingull went yeep and plummeted to the ground, rolling in what little dirt there was on the clean streets of Mauville. (Note: 'yeep' is a borrowed term from Guardians of Ga'Hoole. It refers to when an owl, or any other bird, cannot use its wings and seizes up in panic.)

Vekra growled and clenched her hands. This couldn't be happening, fire always lost to water! "Wingull, get up and 'water-gun' yourself down. Douse that Combusken until your water supply runs out, do you hear me?"

"Great job, Hearth, that's my girl!" Jaylon praised.

Forte was once again amazed at the different kinds of trainers. One was a pal and support to his Pokémon, and even willing to stop his own Pokémon from doing incredible harm. The other type of trainer was one that didn't like to lose, that would do anything to win. Maybe all trainers weren't all bad…?

The gangly teen watched the battle continue. This match was certainly this longest yet. Once one Pokémon looked like it would faint, it got the upper hand and regained some strength. Both trainers urged their Pokémon on. Only Jaylon gave his Pokémon encouragement.

The final battle was coming to a close. Hearth was badly damaged by the constant water attacks and Wingull was panting for breath and feebly flapping its burnt wings.

"Peck, Hearth! Show him what you've got!" Jaylon trumpeted.

"Use 'Peck' too, Wingull!" Vekra commanded.

The two weary birds stumbled toward each other, channeling every ounce of power left for the final hit. Whoever hit first would win!

Wingull hopped forward and flapped its wings. It dove for a weak aerial attack, slightly spinning.

The Combusken waited for the attack, thinking that it could evade just in time.

The Wingull dove. The Combusken jumped. Both attacks hit, both Pokémon closed their eyes and fainted from fatigue. The two fell in a heap of feathers, still breathing, but exhausted.

Jaylon gasped and ran out to help his starter.

Vekra smiled and returned her battered gull. She had won. Jaylon had forfeited the first, lost the second and won the third. With a tie as the fourth, Vekra came out on top!

"It's ok, Hearth," Jaylon cradled the beaten orange bird in his arms. "You fought very well. Good job, girl."

The Combusken cooed and closed its eyes again. It was returned to its Pokéball without another word.

"I win, looser!" Vekra smiled and taunted. "I'm going to become the world's greatest cop, and what will you be? Some washed up Pokémon lover? Nice to see you again, but I think I'm going to leave the town soon. See you!" She laughed and triumphantly pumped her hand in the air.

"Fine, you are strong, but you don't know your Pokémon at all. I pity those guys…" Jaylon pocketed his Pokéball. He didn't want to leave like a loser, but more like a noble combatant that just barely lost.

"Shut up and go to your patty-cake games, naïve little boy!" Vekra laughed and skipped away.

Jaylon sighed and watched the new person called Forte scurry after Vekra. That tall guy was strangely silent and had a comically different Pokémon with him. Compared to his chunky Makuhita, they couldn't look any more different. The appearance of the duo was like comparing a Sealeo to a Sudowoodo. Jaylon hoped the best for the new companion of Vekra, he'd need it.

The brown haired boy was disheartened by his loss, but as long as Dooma was alright, as well as Hearth, then he would be able to live with it. He ran through an alleyway shortcut to the Pokémon Center. This was his home town after all.


	4. Chapter 4, 'Raquaza's Call

**Chapter 4**

"Alright, any questions, Caprico?" Raquaza finished. She sat back in her usual work desk and waved her Charmeleon to fetch her some papers.

Caprico shook his blue head slowly. He had enjoyed the flight over to the secret lair, even though he was blindfolded the whole time. He had flown on Pecha's back, which was very spikey and uncomfortable. But the feeling of flight had been worth it. Now the young boy sat in a chair across from this mysterious helmeted woman. She had just told him his assignment and all the work involved in it. not only that, but she had told the boy about his sister and what she really did in her time away from New Bark.

"Very well then, welcome to the team. Your codename will now be Gible, named after a small dragon-type Pokémon found in the Sinnoh region. Are you comfortable with that codename?" Raquaza asked the new codenamed Gible.

Caprico frowned. "It sounds really weird to call me that. Why can't I be called Suicunne or Lugia or something?"

"Every captain on my team is codenamed after a dragon-type Pokémon. My other captains are called; Dragonite, Garchomp, Kingdra, Flygon, Salamence, Latios, and Latias- your sister's name." Raquaza pointed to herself. "And I am the leader, and I call myself Raquaza, the ozone protector. Do you know a better dragon-type to go by?"

Caprico shook his head. The only dragon types he knew of were Dragonite and its prior evolved forms. He didn't like to be called Dratini or Dragonair, they sounded girly. "Gible will do, I guess." He consented.

"Good, you may have your Pokégear back. My number, as well as my captains' numbers, is in there. Now, before I start treating you like a well-weathered captain, I will introduce your partner to you by phone. After that, you will undergo training with Garchomp; he's the best combatant here." Raquaza smiled under her helmet and picked up the papers Charmeleon had fetched for her. "Just sign here and your family arrangements will be made. And your well-being will be monitored by us and sent to your family. I personally will see to this."

Caprico gave a huge intake of breath. He was taking his sister's place in a strange organization and pretty much running away from home. How would his parents react? What about his little baby sister? "Will my parents be ok, and not worried about me? Can I see them now and again?"

"Of course, you can visit anytime that you are not occupied." Raquaza said kindly and held out the ball-point pen. "And I will not give you the same assignment I gave your sister; I will look out for you."

Caprico didn't like this situation much, but could he just say no? That wasn't an option! If he trained well enough, then he might be able to find and help his sister! She had helped his parents raise him and she loved him even though he was nearly ten years younger. Now it was his turn to help her out!_ I'm coming, Uchiha! _He thought as he scribbled his name.

The woman in green smiled gently and took the paper and pen back to the fire and dragon-like Pokémon. She gave it instructions and it scurried off with a "Char". She leaned her head on her wrist and pointed to her desk-top Pokénav. "Press '13' for your new partner. She's on speed dial."

Codename Gible picked up the receiver and dialed '13'. The ring went on and off for several times. Caprico gave a nervous glance at Raquaza. "I think it won't answer. It's hit the tenth ring…"

The woman in green smiled eerily, "It will pick up."

She was right; the phone clicked on. "Hello?" Caprico tried to start conversation. The young boy heard a rustling sound and faraway voices. "HELLO?" he asked louder.

"What the crap? I didn't answer that!" the faraway voice grumbled. A loud rustling noise ensued and a click was heard. "Good, now it's silent," said the girl voice.

"I'm still here…" Caprico said carefully.

"What? I just hung up the call!" the voice grumbled. The beeps sounded, but somehow the call continued. "Are you still there, little boy calling my phone in a creepy way?" she demanded.

Raquaza held out her hand and Caprico/Gible gave her the receiver happily.

"Hello, Vekra. This is your boss, Raquaza." The woman said silkily.

Caprico leaned closer to catch the dialogue. Raquaza smiled at his curiosity and turned the call on speaker phone.

"Oh crap, you again? Look, I get enough creepy letters, why can't you just get out of my life?" the beeping sound came again; she was trying to end the call.

"Vekra, I have seen you improve slightly. You are certainly a formidable trainer and I want you in my close circle of captains. Granted, you'd make the number rise to eight, but I'm willing to take on a promising trainer as a captain." Raquaza praised tactfully.

"Wait, you mean you already heard about me beating Jaylon?" the female voice went from hostile to scared. "But that was less than five minutes ago!"

The woman showed surprise on her face, but not in her voice. "Ah, so you defeated your teammate, or should I say former teammate?"

"Shut up, I got a new partner, so what do you want from me now?" the girl shouted back: no longer afraid.

Raquaza shook her head and gave a small laugh. "I already told you; I want you as a close working captain. If you accept, then I will send Latios out to pick you up and bring you here to meet Gible. If you don't want to come, then I suppose that I can take Jaylon on as my new captain."

"I can see through your tricks, and I'm not going to fall for them! I don't want your crummy captain's position!"

"You want to become a police, I presume?" the woman smiled and drummed her nails on the table. When she was answered by silence, Raquaza continued, "My organization is not made of officers. They are more like Central Intelligence Agency. They don't respond to trouble, they prevent it. They are a notch higher then officers like Jenny. Are you still interested?"

"Do I have to bring my current partner?" whispered the girl back through the phone.

"Do you want to?"

"No! Call that Latios guy and find me around the Winstrate home or the desert." The phone beeped again, but the call failed to terminate.

"Ok, thank you for trusting me, Vekra." Raquaza hung up the phone and this time, the call ended. Maybe the call can only be canceled by that one phone. With that, the woman in green stood up to her full height and held out her hand in a beckoning gesture. "Now that we have your partner set up, I need you sized for cosplay. You only need to wear it for official business. Come with me, Gible."

Caprico accepted her hand and followed her down the dark hallway. The only speck of light was cast by the faithful Charmeleon's tail. The blue haired boy certainly felt uneasy about this whole thing and the fact that his teammate was a jerk. But maybe things could work out for the better. Just maybe…


	5. Chapter 5, Separate ways

**Chapter 5**

Hiku was becoming a busy girl. Not only was she a trainer only two weeks old, but she had chores to do at home and friends to talk to on the Pokénav. Her friends in Fortree had sent her mail with their numbers on them, so now it would be easier to contact them. And what's more, she talked with Jaylon at least once a day and every other day with her new Sinnoh friend, Rin.

The raven haired girl knew that she ought to train her Pokémon and take more breaks, but her friends seemed to keep up a constant stream of goings on and updates. Nano was becoming impatient and attention starved. Akama the Kirlia found it better to chat with Chammy, the family's Medicham. And Tamaki spent his spare time out in the garden, helping Mrs. Turret with composting old leaves and plants. Shroomishes were experts at aiding composting materials.

Hiku Turret smiled and stared at her Pokénav, almost wishing it would buzz alive and give her an excuse to talk pleasantly to an acquaintance. Nano jumped on her lap and pushed his huge blue head in her face. "MUD!" he protested.

"What, Nano?" Hiku petted the slightly brooding Mudkip. "What's wrong?"

"Kip Mudkip mud-mud-Mudkip…" Nano confessed. Too bad Hiku couldn't understand the little Pokémon.

"Er, I'm sorry, little guy…" Hiku tried to act like she had understood.

Nano sighed and pointed to the Pokénav with his tiny paw. "Kip, kip, mud-mud Mudkip." He jabbed at the cellular device.

"What, you want me to stop talking to my friends?" Hiku felt offended. She didn't spend _that_ much time on the Pokénav…

"Kip!" Nano looked all around him and sighed. "Mud-mud…"

Hiku still didn't have any idea what the little guy was depressed about. She shrugged; giving up the guessing game.

"Kip-kip Mudkip!" Nano jabbed at the Pokénav again and the map button came up. The little mudfish pointed at the dots on the screen. He double tapped on the red dots of Oldale, Petalburg, Rustboro, and Fallabor. "Mudkip mud." He said, and then pointed at the rest of the 10 other grey towns that had not been visited before. "Kip, kip, kip." Nano tapped on each of the towns in turn.

Hiku was slightly getting the picture. "So, you want to go to the grey towns?"

"MUD MUDKIP!" Nano proclaimed loudly and happily. He wagged his little tail-fin and jumped up and down on her lap.

"But we can't up and leave, I'd have to talk with Agent J…" Hiku shuddered at the thought of going on another journey alone. She had barely survived the Seviper/Zangoose feud by fainting and forgetting the gory details. If she had been on her own, then she could have not made it. She was a team person.

"Mud, Mudkip!" Nano bumped the Pokénav with his head, as if telling her to call right now.

"Ok, fine, but even if I suggest another adventure, we can't go right this minute. Got it?" She smiled kindly to her un-evolved Pokémon. She didn't know it, but she was the last of the others to evolve her starter.

Nano looked content and curled up in her lap, waiting for her to call. Then maybe afterwards she could go out in the sun and play with him.

Hiku sighed and patted the little blue Pokémon on the head. Then she turned on the Pokénav and gave Jaylon a customary call. The other end rang two times before it was answered. "Hello?" Jaylon's voice asked.

"Hi, Agent J," Hiku smiled as she used his nickname. "How are you?"

"Been better, I found out today that Vekra, our lousy deserter friend was in Mauville. We had a battle and my Pokémon are in rough shape, mainly Dooma." He said; his usual happiness was absent.

"Oh my! Did you win? What happened?" Hiku held her hand to her mouth. All memory of a trip went kaput in her head. If his Pokémon were in need of help, he would move his schedule around for them. They were his most precious things. And when had Vekra showed up again? Hadn't she abandoned them for her own ambitions?

"Yeah, I lost, but it was close. I forfeited one, lost one, won one and tied the last round. All in all, I lost, but it felt good to give Rain her first battle, even though she wanted to permanently maim the other Pokémon…" Jaylon laughed a bit at his own joke. Hiku found his humor disturbing on that matter.

"So, Vekra showed up again? What does she want?" Hiku continued to chit-chat.

"Yep, she's got a new friend that's hugely tall. He's got a Makuhita and didn't talk much. She went to Mauville to battle Watson I guess…" Jaylon sighed on the other end.

Nano nudged her elbow and she remembered the trip idea. "Hey, Jaylon, do you want to go on another adventure after our break from training?"

"Um_, yeah_. That's what being a trainer is about; traveling to the four corners of the region and getting stronger as we go on. I wish we had more trainers to fight, you know, random people that you spar with just to learn to be stronger. Where do we want to meet? Your place again?" Jaylon said back, this time his voice was happy, not so-much broody.

Hiku smiled and nodded. "Yeah, then I can introduce you to my parents and brother. They got back from Fortree not too long ago. Then after that, I can meet your parents- er, family." She coughed uncomfortably for mentioning his parents. As far as she knew, he was searching for them with no clues. It was kind of like searching for a legendary Pokémon. It could be anywhere, but the ignorance just drives you on to find it.

"Ok…" he said carefully. "It's not like we're dating or what not… but if you want me to meet them, then I guess its ok. Come to think of it, my folks would like to meet you too. Ok, what time should we think about for going to start up the traveling again?"

Hiku shrugged. "I don't care, you call it."

"Ok, then how about Monday? That'll give Dooma three days to recover. And we can meet your folks over breakfast, does that sound ok?" Jaylon pretty much smiled over the phone.

"Yeah, that sounds great." She would have to tell her folks soon about the arrangement. "Are you going to swim again this time?"

"Ha!" He laughed. "I'll _have to_ until I get a water-type Pokémon for myself." His tone changed from humorous to excited. "Hey, get this; have you seen the news lately? Watson –the old guy that was a gym leader in my town—was taken off to an insane asylum! I watched it happen! Boy, I ought to protest to parliament and the Prime Minister." He paused for a second and timidly asked, "Who's the Prime Minister guy again?"

Hiku put her hand to her chin. "Is his name Caleb Krei? That sounds right… wait, a gym leader was hauled off to an asylum? Why?"

"I'll tell you tomorrow when I've got more details. Ok, we set for another adventure then?"

"Ok," Hiku could hardly wait to see her partner again.

"Ok, bye."

"Bye." She clicked the phone off and blushed to herself. Jaylon was a great guy, a really nice, supportive, and slightly weird friend. She couldn't help feeling more for him.

...

"Ok, so here's the deal, I just got offered a great job and I need to be free of a partner for this. Its dangerous stuff and a contest goer can't handle that sort of stuff, you got me?" the blonde girl in stylish clothes said evenly.

Forte nodded. _Was that what to weird phone call was?_ "So, you're going ta leave to some new place where I wouldn't make ya look bad?" Forte actually didn't mind that she was going somewhere far away. He liked the idea. But he wanted to understand exactly why she was leaving and didn't mind torturing her a bit for them.

"No, not that. You were a good companion for the small week we had together… I hope you have fun with your little Silcoon and Makuhita. But I can't waste time in contests. I've got trainer snatchers to combat in top-secret missions!" Vekra went through a variety of emotions to convey her feelings about leaving.

Forte didn't tell her this, but he had had many other companions that had left him with better excuses. They had all seemed to catch an allergy to Maku or get bored with staying in Verdanturf for days upon weeks. "Sure, you just don't like contests…" he mumbled, aiming to make her feel bad.

"Nope, and I've got better things to do. How about you get that Silcoon to evolve and you can fly all the way to Fallabor town on your own." Vekra smiled coldly, her eyes reflecting the coldness. "I'm going to find this 'Latios' guy at the desert up north. If you need a place to stay, room in the Pokémon center or with that wimp that I beat earlier today." She turned abruptly and marched off to the north gate of Mauville.

Forte was stunned. First she had been willing to comfort him, but her patience only went so far. Forte was now left alone in a strange and large city. He looked down at his chubby Pokémon companion. "What do ya think, Maku? Should we meet the other trainer that cares about Pokémon or go our own way?"

The stout Makuhita proclaimed, "Maku, Makuhita hita."

Forte shrugged. "I don't know what yer saying." He sighed. "Ok, do you want to go to the guy's house?"

The yellow fighting-type Pokémon nodded. "Maku!"

"Ok then, can ya follow his scent?" Forte asked loudly. He couldn't help being loud, it was his voice box that was at fault!

"Hitahita!" the Pokémon trundled off to the alleyway that Jaylon had used before.

Forte hoped that the loser in the match didn't mind if he stopped by for a moment. After all, he himself hadn't mocked Jaylon. And secretly, Forte liked that charisma and spunk of the brown haired boy. The gangly teen staggered off after his Pokémon through the strange alley ways of Mauville, blindly hoping that Maku was following the right scent.


	6. Chapter 6, Flight to 'Raquaza?

**Chapter 6**

Vekra had been very happy to break away from Forte. Suddenly, the world seemed normal volume and free of overly concerned people weeping over any and everything. The blonde girl in stylish clothes was on her own once again, and it was a welcome break.

But the thing that stayed with her mind was the lucky break she had gotten. This strange Raquaza person had chosen her to train Pokémon for the greater good or what not, and now Vekra herself was going to join the elite force of crime preventers under the elusive Raquaza. Her prior dreams of busting bad guys and criminals were a wisp in the wind now; this job sounded way cooler!

She stopped at a lovely white Victorian style house. This place was the famous home of the Winstrate family; a family completely devoted to the art of fighting Pokémon. Vekra Ashcroft wondered to herself if they would oblige her to a battle. She decided that that was a good option to burn time by. After all, the handsome 'Latios' guy was going to pick her up.

The blonde knocked on the door. After a few seconds passed, a couple answered the door. They were both in their forties or so.

The woman greeted her. "Hello, I am Victoria Winstrate, and this is my husband, Victor. How can I help you?"

"Yeah, I want to battle the famous Winstrates." Vekra held out her Pokéball fearsomely.

The couple exchanged glances. This time Victor said, "We don't fight trainers anymore."

Vekra couldn't believe her ears. How many times had this been now that she had been denied a battle? "What do you mean? You can't just _not_ fight me!"

"Victoria and I no longer fight. Vito –our son- has just taken off to run Watson's gym until further notice. Mama Vicky… she died a few years back. And Vivi…" Victor broke off mournfully.

Vekra didn't want to hear another sob story. She ticked off the names in her head. Victor was married to Victoria, and Mama was one of their mothers. Then Vito was the oldest son and Vivi was the younger girl.

Victoria Winstrate choked out, "Sweet little Vivi has been snatched away."

"I'm very sorry to hear that." A lower voice said behind Vekra.

The blonde whipped around to see the sad face of 'Latios'. The blonde smiled, relieved that she could leave now and avoid any blubbering. 'Latios' didn't seem to want to move before he said something that was on his heart. "I just went through that as well, but instead of you losing a daughter, I lost a lovely girl…"

Vekra frowned. She didn't like the sad moment and wanted to get away from it. And even more disappointing was that the handsome man with stubble, green eyes, and dressed in white and blue, was taken. Why did all that cute guys already have girls? She didn't smile at her escort.

The Winstrate couple bowed their heads as if starting a prayer for the lost souls.

"Well, I hate to break the mood, but can we leave now?" The rookie trainer tapped her foot impatiently.

'Latios' snapped out of his mournful trance and nodded to her. He waved goodbye to the Winstrates and led Vekra to a large, strange bird Pokémon she didn't recognize.

"This is my Staraptor. It's native to Sinnoh. Now before we take off, I need you to wear this." He pulled out a thick piece of cloth that looked like a blindfold.

Vekra smiled flirtatiously. "I know what that's for." She raised her eyebrows entrancingly.

"For security of the hideout." He said flatly and handed her the blindfold. He hopped on the large grey and white bird and let her sit behind him. "Now put that on and we can be off."

The rookie trainer sighed unhappily. She tied the blindfold on her own accord, but left it purposefully loose to be able to lift at any interval of the trip. She again lamented that 'Latios' wasn't in a happy mood and that he was worried about some other girl she didn't know. Vekra held on to his waist and said, "Ok, it's on. Let's go see Raquaza."

...

Codename 'Latios' directed the beautiful Staraptor over the fields of Hoenn. They were headed for Johto; to the hideout near the formidable mountain of Mt. Silver. Vekra hugged his waist as the Staraptor flew on gracefully.

The captain couldn't help thinking back to when he had first met the little lost Starly. It had somehow had flown to Hoenn during the winter months of Sinnoh and had lost its way back. It had given up on finding Sinnoh and had sadly perched on his own Johto house and twittered sadly for hours. DJ (codename 'Latios's real name) had then come out to see why he couldn't sleep. He was extremely annoyed from the twittering and sent his Seviper after it.

But after DJ saw that this was a rare Sinnoh bird, he stopped his snake from eating it. He had later caught it. It was a female and terribly scared of everything. But DJ's affection had warmed it up to be able to be used as a Pokémon partner.

In fact, it had been thanks to his little girl Staraptor that he met 'Latias' in the first place. His Staraptor and her Pidgeot got along very well. In fact, Oran the Pidgeot would start fighting off other birds in the area to protect his rights to the lovely Staraptor.

DJ liked Uchiha and welcomed her in to the organization that had given him a job, income, and adventure. After a couple missions together, he knew that he and 'Latias'/Uchiha would be a perfect match. He didn't know if she knew that, but he didn't care.

'Latios' snapped out of his reverie and observed the border of Johto. He smiled and patted his grey and white bird Pokémon. "You're doing a good job, Staraptor." He smiled. This Pokémon was special to him, in more than one way.

"Starrrrr," she chirped back.

Suddenly, an explosion sounded from the ground and something whizzed past Staraptor's wing, causing a gust of wind to knock the bird around.

"Raptor, raptor star!" Staraptor cried and began to take evasive maneuvers.

'Latios' glanced around to see what the sound was and who was causing it.

"What the heck was that?" Vekra cried from his back, still faithfully wearing her blindfold.

'Latios' whipped off his cumbersome helmet. He knew it was against the rules to show his whole face on a mission where he had to wear cosplay, but he needed more range of visibility. "Something's wrong." He ground his teeth and scanned the ground with his burning green eyes.

"No duh! Someone just shot at us!" the newbie trainer glared through her blindfold. "Are we in Kanto or something?"

"No, Johto. I thought it was safe here…" DJ trailed off as he heard another explosion from the ground. "Crap, Staraptor, fly to the hideout as fast as you can. No wait, fly to Olivine City, we've got friend there and we can't lead these crazies- Ah!"

Another gust of air at the near miss sent the Staraptor wheeling midair.

Vekra screamed and threw off her blindfold. She gripped tightly to his waist so much so that he gasped for breath. She didn't even realize that now she could see his entire face for the first time.

"Vekra, I can't breathe with you squeezing my lungs like that. Hold on, but not so tightly. We are going to turn around so these scumbags don't know where I'm really going." Latios gasped out and leaned forward on his mount.

Staraptor felt his weight shift and she altered her flight pattern. She began to dive and spin slightly. Then she banked quickly and turned a full 180 degrees and flapped her wings furiously.

Vekra screamed the whole way, but her yell was silenced by the third explosion. The third shot missed terribly, not a breeze of air was felt.

'Latios' sighed and urged his Staraptor faster despite the pleadings from the rookie. They raced through the air, aiming for a bustling town of sailors and traders from other regions. This was Olivine; the seaport of Johto.

The shots ceased, and Vekra let up on her grip. DJ on the other hand was only growing more worried. This strange shooting was not something to be taken lightly. Maybe the trainer snatchers did more than kidnap trainers… maybe they killed them as well… he shoved that thought away. He couldn't bear it if Uchiha was…

To distract himself from useless worry, he went through a list of people to call when he got to a safe place. First, he'd have to call Raquaza and tell her what had happened and that Vekra would be late in coming. Then he would have to call 'Dragonite' to inform him as well. After all, 'Dragonite' was his grandfather! Who would I have to call next? Maybe a friend in Johto to ask what the deal with this was would be another great contact.

Staraptor trilled as she flapped her wings to slow the descent. It was safer to land just outside the town just in case a trainer snatcher spotted two people getting off a Pokémon. Latios also let up, leaning further back to provide more wind resistance. He worked well with his bird in understanding when to direct his weight to slow her or help her fly faster.

The grass came up to the Staraptor's claws and they came to a running stop. Once the bird had stopped, Vekra slid off Staraptor's back and fell to the grass, sending frightened wild Pokémon scuttling away.

"You are the craziest person in the world! I'm not going to ride on that bird for a long time, you hear me?" she huffed from her place in the grass without standing up. Vekra just lay there, recovering from shock.

DJ knew how that first adrenaline rush felt, but 'Raquaza's training had taught him to not freak out as much and not let the adrenaline rush collapse him afterward. He sat on his Staraptor and felt inclined to taunt the rookie, but thought better of it. After all, 'Raquaza' did want this stubborn girl to be a new captain. "You'll have to ride Staraptor if we want to make it to the hideout sometime. But until then, get back to your feet." He rose and returned the large bird back to its blue Pokéball. "We've got to find some friends and I need to make some calls. Come on," he lifted his hand and beckoned to her limp form.

"If you think that I'll move after that craziness…" she left off threateningly, as if she had any power over him.

'Latios' shrugged and didn't fight her. It would better if she thought coming into the town was _her_ own idea. "Ok, just lay there." He shrugged nonchalantly and began to walk towards the waving banners of Olivine city. He knew that she'd follow.

Vekra glanced up from her spot in the grass and saw that the 'Latios' guy was actually leaving her! But hadn't she been asked by 'Raquaza' herself to be a captain. How dare one of her future fellow captains leave her! "Hey! You're supposed to stay with me and help me. I'm the rookie and I need help!" She yelled at the helmetless man dressed in white and blue cosplay.

He didn't seem to hear her, but keep on walking.

Vekra's heart raced in fear. If she was left out here alone, then she might not find him again or this friend he talked about. She was in a strange region where there could possibly be different Pokémon and strange people. What if the people or Pokémon that fired on them found her? Vekra Ashcroft rose shakily to her feet and stumbled after 'Latios'. "Of all the insensitive…" she grumbled as she fought to catch up with him.

DJ smiled to himself as he saw Vekra come of her own will. Maybe she did have the makings of one of 'Raquaza's captains. He slowed his steps ever so slightly to let her catch up.

The rookie caught up with him under the archway of banners leading into the grand port city. She panted and leaned on the pole. "Who's this friend we are looking for?" she gasped against the weighing down of the adrenaline rush.

"She's an undercover trainer who works at the Olivine café, her name… I'll let you guess that."

"I hate guessing games." Vekra huffed and regained a bit of her stature. She glanced around again and clarified, "So, we are in Olivine City in Johto? Was this on the way to this hideout?"

DJ nodded. "Yep, this is Johto. It's not as warm temperature-wise as Hoenn, and Sinnoh is even colder. Sinnoh has an entire town covered in snow. Here in Olivine though, it would be a bad place to have any Pokémon out at your side. Even though this town is far away from the Kanto border, the democracies of Johto and Kanto are pretty closely affiliated. Have a Pokémon battle, and you get thrown into prison if not worse."

"Ok, enough history lesson, let's just get this over with." Vekra stood up to her full height and frowned.

'Latios' liked her determination, but he knew that she was also slightly spoiled as well. "Ok, let's grab a bite to eat."

"What about this person/contact/friend, eh?" she furrowed her brow even further.

"She works at the best café in the city." He gently corrected her and hid his Pokéball in this cosplay. Then, he whipped off the cosplay like it was a blanket, revealing normal civilian clothes underneath. He stuffed the white and blue costume in his trainer's bag and put on a regular hat. Suddenly, he had taken on a new look. He looked no different than a normal, average Joe that could live in any Pokémon region.

DJ patted his bag and fingered a zipped pocket. "This is where I keep my Pokémon for emergencies. Do you have a place where you can hide your Pokéball and still get to them easily?"

Vekra looked down at her obvious belt of Pokéballs and grumbled. The blonde grabbed each one and stuffed it into a buttoned pocket on the outside of her bag. "Fine, now can we go?"

DJ/'Latios' nodded and led the way into the stone-tiled, festive city.


	7. Chapter 7, Getting along?

**Chapter 7**

(This chapter is in a Pokémon's perspective)

Rain absolute hated everything about Jaylon. His insistence, his looks, even his voice. But even more annoying about the kid was that he fought her with his own strength, putting himself up as a fellow Pokémon. Jaylon wanted to be friends, even though he didn't understand what he had done to her. She had been living a nice life with the wild Zangeese and was going to finally be old enough to fight off Sevipers from their territory, then along comes the stupid kid and his Combusken. Rain wanted to teach the stupid human a lesson, but Hearth would end up hearing about it and threaten Rain. His loyal starter Pokémon was much too infatuated with him to let anything terrible happen to him.

Rain the Zangoose laid out in the warm sunshine and blinked against the glare of the sunlight. She watched Jaylon, his younger cousins Ana and Mike, and the assorted Pokémon playing out in the small yard. Evidently, Mauville had smaller playing spaces than Fallabor town. The small yard made Rain feel uncomfortable, cramped, and lazy. She didn't have any Seviper invasion to think about and she was constantly bored.

Jaylon laughed and tossed the stick to Knight the Poocheyna. The little black wolf Pokémon barked happily and retrieved it to the younger children's delight. Dooma the Ninjask hovered in the air, observing everything but not taking part. Her exoskeleton was bandaged and still healing from the ugly Trapinch bite. Rain didn't feel sorry for the bug. After all, what was the bug to her? She had lost her match, and Rain had won hers. That had to mean that Dooma was inferior, right?

Oan the Gulpin sat in the grass lazily, almost sleeping. Rain didn't like this Pokémon either; he was far too slow and lazy to be any help. Not only that, but he was poison type, not the best type to befriend since she had had bad history with poison-type Sevipers.

Then Rain let her black and red eyes focus on the stupid, naïve Combusken that spoke so highly of loving a human. Hearth the Combusken. That chicken Pokémon had kicked her several times before Rain had been captured. The Zangoose still couldn't forgive the Pokémon for wounding her so badly. And what was worse was that Hearth thought they could be friends after that whole event. Not on the chicken's life!

Another human call went up; a deeper call of the uncle. Rain watched lazily as the young cousins of her new human trainer ran inside to greet their father. They stamped by her face, spraying a bit of dirt on her snow-white pelt. Rain sat up, hissed, and began to groom her fur to get any spots out.

Jaylon passed by her as she groomed. He smiled in his weird human-way and said, "I'll leave you and your teammates together now. After all, you have to all rely on each other." He called in the Poocheyna and closed the plastic door behind him.

Rain shook her head and gazed at the group of misfit Pokémon. She decided that she didn't need to meet them. The female Zangoose stayed right where she was.

Hearth the Combusken began to squawk out a happy conversation that seemed more to make Rain feel like she was missing out. _Wow, I had a lot of fun today, didn't you?_

_When I wasn't nearly eaten by that Trapinch, yeah, I had fun. Human maggots are fun to watch._ Dooma hummed and hovered closer to the ground, as if favoring her wings.

_Maggots? That's very rude, Dooma!_ Hearth waved around her yellow feathered arms in exaggeration. _They are not maggots!_

_That's what we bugs call young ones._ Dooma replied levelly.

Hearth stopped waving around her arms and admitted bashfully, _Oh… well, we bird Pokémon call young ones chicks. I think 'chicks' is a better term for Master Jaylon's family._

Rain rolled her eyes. Human should not be referred to as masters!

Oan joined the circle and said slowly, _I miss Hiku's Pokémon. I like Akama the Ralts a lot._

_Akama evolved into a Kirlia._ Hearth corrected. This chicken was obviously the smartest and the self-proclaimed leader of the group. Well, not including Rain. Rain could honestly be the smartest Pokémon in the group, no doubt!

Rain admitted that she liked the Kirlia as well, just because she had been beating Sevipers left and right… it was so cool to watch the enemy fall under a different Pokémon's hand. Rain was glad that she had saved the Kirlia from falling over Meteor Falls.

Hearth looked like she was trying to bring up another topic that would make Rain want to join them. _So, what about them Sevipers, eh?_

Oan blinked his tiny eyes. _What's that?_

Dooma hummed quietly to herself.

Hearth frowned and snapped her beak several times after not seeing a reaction from Rain. _They must be pretty strong. But then again, I don't think so. I mean, if they were super strong, then they would've killed every Zangoose by now. But Zangeese can't be all that strong because I defeated one easily._

Rain felt her anger boiling, but didn't want to give the chicken the satisfaction.

_No really, what's a Kirlia?_ Oan repeated his question. A slight trickle of drool pooled at his puckered lips.

Hearth threw up her feathered arms in submission. _Oan! Come on! A Kirlia is an older form of Ralts._

_Is a Kirlia pretty?_ The Gulpin waved his yellow feather on top of his head.

_Yes!_ Hearth spat out angrily.

Rain smiled at how easily this chicken could fall apart. Without thinking, Rain spoke to the crowd of Pokémon that she was supposed to travel with. _A Kirlia is pretty handy as well. If only Jaylon had captured a Kirlia, then all my worries would be over._

_Hey, Akama is mine! And you're a girl as well… ew…_ Oan gave a blubbery frown_. Well, you still can't have her! I called her, even if you might be interested in your own gender…_

_Shut up, stupid blob! I'm not interested in her; she's just nice to have around since I'm a normal-type._ Rain rolled her eyes at the pure stupidity.

_Why should that have anything to do with Akama?_ Oan defended. He was obviously taken to the Kirlia and wouldn't hear a bad word against her or a different suitor.

_Psychic attacks are good against fighting-types. Fighting-type is my only weakness. _The Zangoose rolled her eyes.

_Are you inferring something, newbie? _Hearth huffed out a lick of fire from her beak.

Rain glared at the Combusken and thought about fighting her. Sure, if she won, she'd be able to show the chicken up. But if Hearth scored some fighting-type hits, Rain would be in the Pokémon center for a while. The Zangoose glared evenly at the Combusken and decided against a fight. She closed her eyes and tried to feign sleep.

Dooma, who had been silent for a long time, spoke up. _Shouldn't we all get along? After all, we four are Jaylon's Pokémon. If we fight in a double battle, we should figure out if we can trust each other. _The Ninjask hummed in its serious tone.

_I'm not any human's Pokémon, and I'm not a newbie! _Rain snapped and rose on her four legs. If she was really tempted, she'd rise to her rear legs for added intimidation.

_Yes you are a human's Pokémon, and you've got to accept it!_ Hearth growled back.

Oan the Gulpin gazed around at the tense scene and asked quietly, _So, we aren't talking about Akama anymore?_

_NO!_ Rain and Hearth yowled at the same time.

"Is everything ok out there?" Jaylon opened the door and poked his head out.

_Go away. Even better, let me go back to my home!_ Rain hissed. She could now somehow be understood by this one human, and she took every advantage of it.

The brown haired boy shook his head. "I told you that the Pokémon here are better than your Zangoose friends. And I can't have you running away, either, Rain. You and I will be great friends, just you wait." He smiled and waved to the other Pokémon. Then he shut the door and the yard went back to Pokémon conversation.

Hearth couldn't wait to rub this news in Rain's face. The yellow Combusken hopped closer and tweeted, _Ah, we are better than any of your Zangoose friends?_

_Shut up! _She hissed back.

_Was that why I could defeat you so easily; you had no friendlies to help you try to kill Master Jaylon?_

_Shut up, piece of fodder!_

Dooma rose slightly in the air, sensing the hate build between the two Pokémon.

Oan, the only male Pokémon in the group, sat back and thought about Akama and what a Pokémon called Kirlia would look like.

_I can see why you didn't have any other Zangeese helping you back in that fight around Meteor Falls; there are just too many things to point out!_ Hearth continued to taunt. The Combusken wanted a battle to show up the snotty new Pokémon.

_Get away from me and my problems. I don't like any of you and I refuse to be any human's Pokémon!_ Rain yowled and rose to her hind legs. Her white fur stood out and did make her look quite threatening.

Dooma hovered in the air, shaking its head ever so slightly in despair.

Oan blinked sleepily and asked, _So… that means you don't have your eyes on Akama?_

With a terrific yowl, the Zangoose launched herself into the air and landed on Oan's head. She hissed like a demon and raked her sharp claws against the thick, blubbery skin of the hapless Gulpin. Oan cried out loudly and opened his mouth wide to swallow the pesky thing that was attacking him. His skin didn't break, even under Rain's sharp claws.

Jaylon burst through the door and glared at his Pokémon team. "What is wrong with you guys?" He rubbed his forehead in frustration. "Can't I trust you to keep quiet and get along just for dinner time?"

Rain, still in a fury, whipped around and hissed a few nasty curse words at the human boy.

Hearth widened her eyes and blushed at the terrible curses Rain threw at the human. She was glad that human's couldn't hear those sorts of words from Pokémon.

Jaylon's ears turned red. "Rain, really. That wasn't necessary. You shouldn't curse like that. Do I have to return you to your Pokéball?"

The female Zangoose gave an equivalent answer of 'go the heck' with a few naughtier words. She was instantly returned in a flash of red light.

Hearth gaped at Jaylon. How did he understand that? Had he been somehow learning to understand Pokéspeak? _How did you understand that?_ She chirped.

"It's ok, Hearth. Rain will get better eventually. Maybe we can all be friends, someday…" the brown haired boy with the bandana sighed and shut the door again.

The Combusken shrugged to herself. _He didn't understand me, that's for sure._ But how did he hear Rain's curses? What really is this Zangoose? What if she was some sort of Pokémon in masquerade? Maybe even a Mew? Hearth, now feeling more cooled down, turned to her strange companions. She didn't like them herself, but if destiny was telling her that these were her new friends, then there was nothing she could do to change it. Hearth sat down in the dirt and scratched at it with her hand-claws. _What do you think is wrong with that Zangoose? Why can Master Jaylon understand her?_

Dooma, the seemingly most level-headed one, lifted her claws tenderly. _No idea_.


	8. Chapter 8, Refuge in Johto

**Chapter 8**

Vekra sighed and tried to calm her racing heart and stay standing at the same time. She had been pretty much shot out of the sky and stuck in this foreign port city of Johto. She didn't like Johto, it felt colder and the people had different accents than her own. They had strange customs and outdoor markets, even fresh stuff called MooMoo milk that came from a farm up north. Vekra didn't know what a moomoo was and she didn't care to know.

But even more aggravating to her was not the strangeness and apparent lack of Pokémon running around and helping, but the only familiar person was completely aloof to her. _Hello?_ She wanted to ask 'Latios' and gain his attention. He only spoke vaguely to her, as if he couldn't trust her. The handsome captain of 'Raquaza', now in normal street clothes, just walked around lazily as if he loved the town and had no hurry. Hello? Hadn't he just been under attack?

Vekra didn't care that her hair was windblown, not yet. She wanted to call up something familiar to combat the loneliness, but something told her that calling out any of her Pokémon would spell doom for them. Wasn't Johto a place where the trainer numbers were lowest, or was that Kanto? Did she even care?

The blonde rookie trainer followed obediently after the twenty-something old trainer. He went around at the shops and glanced at the produce. People smiled and called him "DJ". Vekra didn't know if that was a codename he used. If he called himself 'Latios', how many other nicknames could he have?

Vekra finally grumbled and complained, "Come on, where's this friend of yours? Can we find her and get out? I want to start my training!"

'Latios' glanced down at her as if finally realizing that she was there. "You don't like this place?"

"No, I like Hoenn and Ever Grande City." She glared at him. Why would she like this place?

"This is Olivine city, my hometown… But if, you'd like, I'll bring you to the café. Then you'll be able to find a bit of Hoenn in there." He said mysteriously and started strolling in the general direction of a huge building with people coming in and out.

Vekra wanted to scream at him for her frustrations. Why didn't he care about the rookie trainer that 'Raquaza' herself had chosen? She stamped after him, determined to be as miserable as possible.

'Latios' led her to a large building with big letters on the roof that proclaimed; "Olivine Café, the best for any hungry sailor!". They went inside and found it filled with happily chatting people eating and laughing at each other. Vekra was painfully reminded of her escapade into the echoing chambers of Whismur and the terrible wails that drove her nearly insane. This place wasn't as bad, but she still didn't want to trust an echoing place.

"Is something wrong?" 'Latios' finally acknowledged her and gazed at her with his deep green eyes.

"I just had a bad experience with Whismurs in Verdanturf cave… they were screaming and the walls echoed their cries… I don't like big places that echo anymore…" Vekra admitted, feeling good that someone cared about her feelings and past.

'Latios' nodded solemnly. "Never liked Whismurs a whole lot…"

The rookie nodded. "There's really no use for cry-babies as far as Pokémon goes…"

"I said that I don't prefer Whismurs, not that they are useless…" The tanned man corrected and smiled at the sight of someone. "Ah, our friend is here. Shall we meet her?"

Vekra Ashcroft nodded and followed 'Latios' to the wide bar counter. She flinched at the sight of men sipping a fizzy brown drink that she had never heard of before. The men laughed and crowded around the television to watch a soccer game of the Olivine Ampharoses team playing against the Blackthorn Dragonites. They weren't real Pokémon playing the soccer game, the Pokémon were just the mascots. Vekra had no idea what those Pokémon were, but the game was actually a pretty close one. She was reminded of her home soccer team; the Shiny Salamences.

She sat down at the bar counter and 'Latios' waved over a female server. The woman with tanned skin (almost as dark as 'Latios' himself) and short dark brown hair had a cheery smile hiding weariness of working long hours. She wore the Olivine café uniform of the white shirt with the logo and khaki pants and an apron.

"Hello, and welcome to the Olivine café. Can I take your order?" She said sweetly and formally to both of them.

'Latios' gave Vekra a strange glance and said to the waitress, "We have come from far away and we are looking for a place to stay. We are also looking for a Pokémon."

Vekra frowned. Since when had they started looking for a specific Pokémon?

"Ah, and which Pokémon would that be?" the tanned waitress with short dark-brown hair raised her eyebrows.

"A Latios." 'Latios' remarked casually.

The rookie was even more confused. She had heard that name before (besides it being his codename) due to it being a naturally Hoenn-living Pokémon, but to look for a rare Pokémon like that? She wanted to ask what was going on, but the two kept talking to so as to not be interrupted.

"A Latios?" the waitress leaned closer to 'Latios's face and frowned knowingly.

"Yes, they are quite common in my area. Will you help me?" the handsome trainer smiled whimsically.

"I certainly will." The waitress smiled back and went back to the cash register.

Vekra couldn't hold herself back. "What was that about? Since when did we agree to go hunting for some rare Pokémon? We were in danger an hour or so ago!" She pounded her fist on the counter, but her outrage didn't penetrate or calm the constant chatter, though she did receive some curious stares.

'Latios' gave her a dangerous look.

The tanned waitress raised her eyebrows again and said sweetly. "I don't think that's part of the code…"

"What…? Oh…" Vekra suddenly realized that the weird conversation had been some sort of code to identify him as a true captain of Raquaza, not some pretend person. "Sorry, I didn't realize…" She felt awkward now. How could she not expect cool people that were higher rank that police officers would talk in code? It was almost like secret agent style or something awesome like that.

"You must be new. What is your name?" the waitress smiled and grabbed a pad of paper to take their orders with.

"She doesn't have a Pokémon name yet, but her name is Vekra." 'Latios' answered before she could utter a word.

The waitress smiled. "Are you from Hoenn? Your dialect is very Hoenn-ish."

"Yeah." The rookie said quickly before 'Latios' covered for her again. She could handle herself! "And you sound slightly the same."

"I'm from Hoenn as well. My grandma lived on Mt. Pyre and protected the red and blue orbs. My name is Phoebe." The waitress smiled and beckoned to them. "Shall I find you a better place to sit at?"

Vekra shrugged and followed Phoebe. She didn't know why, but the name Phoebe seemed slightly familiar… the rookie blonde dismissed this and sat down at a booth in the farther corner. She sat on the cushy seats and picked up the menu. 'Latios' thanked Phoebe and sat down across from Vekra.

"Ok, I don't have a huge amount of money on me, so don't get anything too expensive." The handsome captain said as he scrutinized over the menu.

Vekra smiled slightly. "I'm touched that you'd pay for me, but I can take care of myself." She did want to accept his treating her to a meal, but the fact that he cared for a woman his own age other than her turned her off to any thoughts of their pairing. She sighed and thought that a plate of noodles and vegies would taste better than her usual food that she brought along. She set down the menu and remarked, "Hey, I don't know your real name. I can't go around calling you 'Latios' now can I? I mean, we are going to be the same rank as each other, right?"

The man looked slightly uncomfortable for a second and he glanced around before saying quietly, "Ok, you do have a point. You can call me DJ, but only sparingly outside of this city. Got it? Raquaza doesn't like it, but we do call each other by our real names…"

"What's the deal with Raquaza? I mean, how can one woman tell you what you can and can't do?" the blonde with stylish clothes and slightly tussled hair complained.

"Shush! You never know who can be listening, even in a nice place like this. We are in Johto, and there are more regulations here than you are used to in Hoenn." DJ glanced around and clenched his teeth together. "And I do what Raquaza says because she knows best. She was part of the Lugia Rider battle and the fall of Galactic." He sighed and confessed, "And sometimes I think that 'Raquaza' is actually _two_ or more people in the same costume. Crazy, huh?"

Vekra didn't know what to make of this, and yet, it could make more sense. If there was more than one 'Raquaza' person, then that would explain the strange personal letters and eye-in-the-sky knowing. And what was this about a Lugia Rider and such? "She annoys me; she tells me what to do and doesn't let me do what I want. A Pokémon journey is where you grow up by making your own decisions, not following someone else!"

"But you wouldn't have been a Pokémon trainer if it wasn't for 'Raquaza'." DJ shrugged and set down his menu.

"I would have found a way!" Vekra shot back just as Phoebe came back to take drink orders.

"What will you two be having then?" the tanned woman asked politely.

'Latios' looked up from the conversation and smiled. "Ah yes, I'll take some water and your BTL sandwich please."

Vekra said plainly, "I'll try some Moomoo milk (whatever a Moomoo is) and a plate of noodles with broccoli and grilled onions and peppers."

"Very good, I'll get that going for you guys." Phoebe said in a waitress-style manner before adding, "You can stay with me; my shift gets over after 7:00. I'll be sure to find you before I leave, K?" she smiled again and walked off to her other tables.

DJ continued to watch her walk away. He thoughtfully thought out loud, "It's incredible what life gives you sometimes… I was born here and after a few years of training, I wound up in Hoenn. I actually went to challenge the Elite Four… but that was before this whole Pokémon Trainer disappearing stuff had been happening. But I went to the Hoenn league and I lost to her…"

"Who?" Vekra didn't catch what he was saying.

"I lost the challenge because I fought Phoebe and lost. She was one of the Elite Four, now she makes a living by waiting tables and I'm in a pro-trainer secret agent. Weird, huh?"

**Haha! I've majorly demoted Phoebe! Anyways, if you are at this point in the story, I applaud you. I apologize that I can't write a short story for those who like short stories.**

**Anyways, I should tell you that you are catching up to where I am currently writing. Soon I'll be behind and uploading as soon as I get something done, just like normal uploaders!**

**Read and Review, because I love hearing CC and suggestions. I haven't closed the ending yet, so I might keep a character alive if someone wishes, or I might kill them anyways… *Evil laugh***


	9. Chapter 9, Snatching

**Chapter 9**

Forte had depended on his Makuhita's nose too much. He should have known for a fact that since he couldn't see Maku's nose that Maku wouldn't be able to smell very well. The unfortunate pair was still wandering around the strange streets of Mauville after the mysterious trainer that cared for his Pokémon. "Come on, Maku, we've got to be getting' closer. Don't ya sniff him?"

"Hitahita maku…" the pudgy little fighting-type sighed and turned down another alleyway.

"This is getting ridicerlous. Maybe we should find somebody an' ask 'em if they've seen 'im." The tall, lanky, and loud teen rubbed his forehead. Even though he was glad to get away from Vekra, he still didn't know what to do with his life. He had seen news reports about the destruction of Fallabor town and that the contests were moved to Fortree, but he didn't know where that was. Maybe this Jaylon guy could help him.

"Maku-maku hita Makuhita!" Little Maku sat down in the alley and thumped its punching glove arms on the cobbles.

"Yeah, I don't like this place neither. It's far too big fer me." Forte agreed with what he thought his Pokémon was saying. After all, it was impossible to fully understand Pokémon, right?

"Rattata!" came a cry from the alley way. A purple and white mouse Pokémon came up and sniffed the frustrated Maku. "Ta, ta rata?"

"Hita Maku Makuhita." Maku replied back.

Forte had no idea what his trusted contest star was saying to this strange Pokémon, but he hoped that Maku was asking directions.

"Ta, ta rat Rattata ratta." The purple mouse nodded and scampered off down a different alley.

"Hita, hita Maku maku ma." Maku waved emphatically to his human master and the two misfits were off again, following a small rat that somehow knew the way. The travel was relatively short and the small Rattata lead them to a small duplex. It squeaked happily and burrowed into a small crack in the floorboards and disappeared.

Forte blinked several times to see if the rodent would reappear, but nothing came back out. The human sighed and looked at his faithful Makuhita. "Good job Maku… I think. We still have to find out if this is the right place." Forte watched his Pokémon nod slowly and trundle up to the creaking steps.

Forte hesitantly knocked at the door and waited politely. He heard yowling in the backyard and wondered if Jaylon was training at this time. The door was answered by a slightly frustrated boy with a bandana and familiar look. Jaylon paused for several seconds before venturing a question.

"Uh, hi?" the boy asked cautiously.

"Hey thar. I'm Forte and I watched yer battle against Vekra back an hour or so ago. Uh, it's kinda awkward, but could I stay with ya before I find out where I'm headed to next?" the loud boy stumbled through his poorly thought out plan.

Agent J opened and closed his mouth several times before saying warily. "Where's Vekra?"

"She left to go on some sorta special mission or somethin'. Now I'm stuck here and have no idea where Fortree is. Could I stay here for a sec? I really liked watchin' ya battle with yer Pokémon." Forte shrugged and tried to be as casual as possible. This was really awkward…

"So she just dumped you here?" Jaylon tilted his head quizzically like a Pokémon. "Well, I think you can come in. We are eating dinner right now… and then I'll be off to Oldale soon…"

Forte grinned from ear to ear. "Much obliged, sir. Thank ye very much. You do have a kind heart, don't cha?"

...

Caprico patted his twin Zangeese affectionately on the head to comfort them as well as himself. The usually rambunctious twins were nervous while waiting in this strange, dark room, and their unease didn't help Caprico's nerves. Pieces, the girl twin, nuzzled closer to his arm and purred worriedly. They had been waiting in this room ever since Raquaza had led him to it. This place was supposed to be a dorm room for him, but six of the eight light bulbs in the ceiling light were out.

Caprico waited here until he would be called out. After all, this place wasn't a playground; this was a strange place where his sister grew super strong and beat up bad guys. The young boy shuddered as one of the remaining bulbs flickered and his eyes began to play tricks on him.

Gemini hissed and faced a dark corner of the room. His sister mimicked him and soon the two young white Pokémon were standing on their back legs and baring their teeth. The young blue haired Boy gasped and wheeled to face the hidden danger. "Wh-who's there?" Caprico shivered as he looked to the darkness and swore he saw two glowing yellow eyes.

The yellow eyes came closer and the young Pokémon hissed louder before backing up. Caprico didn't like that sign; that meant that they were angry and scared, but they knew that this strange Pokémon wasn't to be messed with. Why did Raquaza do this to him?

A sudden glow came from the yellow-eyed Pokémon to reveal a lion-like Pokémon that was black and blue in coloration. It had a star-like tail and bands around its front feet glowed softly. "Luxray…" the Pokémon identified itself with a soft purr.

In the shadows, a shape moved and stepped into the soft glow of the Luxray. It was a human dressed in a strange attire of purple, complete with bullet shaped things coming from the sides of his head and fins hanging off his arms. He was in Pokémon cosplay. "Hey there, new recruit." He said sunnily. "I heard that your Pokémon codename is 'Gible'. Pleased to meet you, I'm Garchomp."

"Who are you and why are you so sneaky?" Caprico gasped and backed away with his nervous Zangeese. There was something just not right about having a strange, scary man in his darkened room with a large lion-like Pokémon out. It didn't feel right. If his Pokémon didn't seem comfortable, then neither he wasn't either.

The man dressed as a Garchomp raised his arms and smiled warmly. "Sorry, but I wanted a cool entrance. By the way, the light bulbs aren't dead; a Rotom's just been eating up all the electricity. A Rotom is from the Sinnoh region and are annoying sometimes… But hey, what can you do, right?" he said casually and flicked on a table lamp that Caprico hadn't seen before.

Gemini and Pieces settled back down to their four feet, but still looked wary. Caprico mirrored their slight relaxing. "So, you're the guy who is going to help me train Pokémon?" the blue haired boy clarified.

"Well, you and your Pokémon. You can't be ready to take on challenges without a workout for yourself." Garchomp said happily and stroked the large Luxray. "You've got two Zangeese?"

"Yes, they are a good team. This is Gemini," Caprico waved his hand to the small cat-ferret Pokémon to his right, "and this is his sister, Pieces," the boy gestured to the Pokémon at his left.

'Garchomp' scratched his chin and blinked in the dim light. "How can you tell them apart? They look exactly alike."

"I can tell them apart," the blue haired boy bragged and patted his Pokémon's heads, soothing them further. "Gemini's faster but Pieces can do a number on him when she's really mad. She's stronger than he and she had the move 'double kick' from birth, so she's always got an advantage over him. Gemini has 'night slash' and 'flame thrower' attacks and is better at his specials. They are very different."

"Goose," the male twin purred at his name.

"Zan-Zan goose Zangoose," Pieces, now unafraid of the man in the gloom, rubbed against her trainer's leg happily.

'Garchomp' looked impressed. "Well, you know more about your Pokémon than I do about my own. But maybe you should give them a trinket or something so the rest of us can tell the difference. Follow me and we'll get started." The man smiled and flipped on a switch that commanded the lights to flicker brighter. He then turned and beckoned the boy to the secret entrance to Caprico's room.

"Hey, mister, do you have a Pokémon called Garchomp since you're dressed like one?" Caprico asked happily, as if the brightness in the room and sunny conversation was cheering him up.

The man's face fell and he said softly, "I did… but he's gone now…" Without another word, the man in Pokémon cosplay exited after his Luxray.

...

Hiku sat outside, drinking in the warm sun. It was about fall time in Hoenn. Hiku liked spring a lot more because spring always seemed like the best season to be outside in. After all, summer was so unbearably hot and winter was chilly and windy. The autumn was pleasant, but didn't have the same hope spring seemed to have.

Nano scampered around at her feet, chirping for her to play. Hiku's other Pokémon were in their Pokéballs, content to nap. "Kip, kip Mudkip kip-kip." Nano squeaked in his adorable high voice as he nudged Hiku's leg again.

"Not now, Nano." Hiku said sleepily, "I just want to relax out here."

Little did she know that a group of three men hid out in the bushes nearby, waiting for the opportune moment. One of the black suited men whispered to the others, "Are you sure this is a rookie trainer? She looks a lot more like one of those washed up fans or contest goers."

"Our informant didn't know much about her appearance, but he knows that 'Raquaza' has three new rookies for her. If we can get the rookies before they get too strong, and then force them to tell us about this organization that glorifies the disgusting relationship between Pokémon and humans, then we shall be known as heroes to our cause." Another of the men dressed in black replied.

"Are you sure our double agent is reliable?" the third asked hesitantly to the second, the apparent leader.

"Certain. Our informant plays both sides well, but his true loyalty is to us." The second replied. "Now, if I am correct in guessing, this girl is a trainer because she has a rare starter Pokémon. We'd best surprise her and daze her Pokémon. Then snatch her away like the others we have done. Got it you two?"

The other two nodded, unwilling to usurp the other man's authority.

The first man who spoke took out a handkerchief from his pocket and carefully held it away from his own nose. This kerchief was soaked in a liquid form of knock-out gas. This was a key tool for Pokémon trainer snatchers. The first man sighed and remembered how the man who had attempted to capture the trainers in Fallabor town had failed miserably. For that, the man had been stripped of rank and forsaken. The first man didn't even know if the mess-up man was even still alive. The first man nodded to himself. He would not fail like that man had in Fallabor town.

The third man who had spoken pulled out a tiny, hand-held Taser. "I'll get the Pokémon, then you get the girl, ok?" he addressed the first man.

"Just like normal procedure." He replied.

The third man rose up and hid the Taser carefully up his sleeve. Then he casually walked past the black haired girl and pretended to be entranced by the little Mudkip that nudged Hiku's leg in protest.

Hiku opened her eyes and blearily looked at the strange man in formal black attire. "Hello, who are you?" she asked politely.

"I'm sorry, I don't mean to disturb you, but that Mudkip is a rare Pokémon is it not?" the man bowed politely. "I am very interested in rare Pokémon. Do you mind if I take a look at it?"

Hiku smiled and stood up. She picked up Nano and cradled it like a baby. "Sure you can. His name is Nano." She smiled down at the little blue Pokémon.

The man bent closer to the blue water-type Pokémon and pretended to admire the fine specimen. "Do you mind if I pet him?" he asked politely.

"No problem, Nano loves attention."

The man set his hand on the Mudkip and let the Taser make contact with its head. Nano suddenly convulsed in a spasm and cried out in pain from the crippling effect of electricity. Hiku gasped and hugged her wounded and stunned Mudkip.

Without another warning, the first man who had spoken lunged from the bushes and whipped the handkerchief over her mouth and nose. Hiku tried to scream, but the cloth muffled it. Then the drug began to start working. The trainer lost control of her body and she slumped into the first man's waiting arms.

"Good work, now all we have to do is get out." The third man with the Taser said as he helped hoist the girl over the first man's shoulders. The second man raced out and received the little dazed Mudkip. The three began to sprint for the trees and bushes to make a clean escape, but they were not so lucky.

A cry went up and the third man looked around to see what he could do to back his teammate. The third man saw two boys sprinting up to where the man and the captured trainer were. They had Pokémon with them. The large, tall boy with a very loud voice had a Makuhita riding on his shoulders, and the brown-haired boy had a fierce white Zangoose running on all fours.

The third man stood his ground and prepared for a counter attack, while his teammates made for the woods, carrying off Hiku and Nano. He pulled out a hidden gun and aimed it at the large, loud boy. This gun was a silencer, and a sleek model that could be stored away sneakily. Only four shots would fall all of them. He squeezed the trigger ever so slightly…

A surprise hit came from the third man's blindside. A strong kick sent the man staggering aside and the bullet buried itself in the earth. The man turned around and loaded the gun again, ready to defend.

A furious pink and white Pokémon with thick hips and thighs ran at the man again and kicked his chin. The man felt his head snap back in pain and his senses reeled. He fell to the ground and a trickle of blood emerged from his mouth. He was too dazed to defend himself now. At least his teammate had captured the girl and the Pokémon.

Chammy the Medicham stood at the ready to kick the man a third time. By then, the whole Turret family came out of the house to see where the housemaid Pokémon had stormed off to. Now the Turret family stared at a wounded man in black and two boys running with their Pokémon to the fallen man.

"Where did Hiku go?" Mrs. Turret glanced around for her daughter.

Chammy's fury was outmatched by Jaylon. The rookie trainer ran up to the dazed man and held his shirt threateningly. Jaylon punched the man in the face in anger and screamed, "WHERE did you take HIKU?" without a second to lose, Jaylon punched the man again.

His Zangoose inched closer to the man dressed in black and rose to her back two feet. She flashed her sharp claws at him and inched closer.

The taller boy stood back, trying to take the strangeness all in. The Makuhita on his shoulders stayed silent.

Mrs. Turret's eyebrows raised in fear. She seemed to pick up what happened. Weyler Turret on the other hand ran up to the brown haired trainer and asked, "Who the heck are you and what happened?"

Jaylon didn't release the man in his grip, but he answered Hiku's brother, "I'm Hiku's friend, and I saw her just be taken by this scum and a partner."

"She's been snatched?" Weyler's eyes grew wide behind his glasses.

"Now you tell me where your friend went and what you plan to do to her, or so help me I'll send my Zangoose to slit your throat!" Jaylon bellowed, tears coming to his eyes by the sheer emotion he felt.

The man smiled weakly. "You don't know? The order has gone out to snatch up every trainer. You are giving up your human dignity when you call a Pokémon your equal. That is why our director has us kidnap and kill useless people who forfeit their dominance…" the man stammered out, blood still running from his mouth.

Jaylon gasped at this. "What did you say?" he said, completely caught off guard.

"Zangoose Zan-Zan goose Zangoose [can I slit his throat now?]" Rain asked her trainer.

"No, Rain," he shook the man again and demanded, "What are you talking about?"

"You are all humans that have forfeited your dominance. For that, you will pay…" the man fell limp as he slipped into unconsciousness.

**A/N: Yeah, I have to admit that there was a bit of time-space distortion, or maybe a day or so passing in that chapter. But also: Fun fact, I didn't plan for Hiku to be kidnapped ahead of time. I was just thinking that these imaginary bad guys were way too undercover, so I had a snatching. Weird how the mind works, huh?**

**Anyways, I'll leave who ever reads this to wonder what will happen to the beloved Hiku.**


	10. Chapter 10, Political Unrest

**A/N: now you sparse readers are in for a treat (maybe). This chapter will be long, but it'll be important. The Trainers heroically run after Hiku's kidnappers, and Raquaza is introduced fully by name. Then a report on the TV that features the leaders of the four allied nations leaves Raquaza trembling. Ok, enough intro, read it! …. Please? **

**Chapter 10**

Forte watched in fascination as the respectable trainer that he had known fighting Vekra fall apart in an angry mess. Jaylon –still trembling in rage– sat by the unconscious man. Forte didn't know what to do or what to say.

Fortunately, Hiku's brother was much more thoughtful and began to spit out orders. His eyes flashed behind his glasses as he observed the scene before him. "Ok, this guy had to do with snatching Hiku. Mom and Chammy will watch over the creep and interrogate him when he wakes up. You two trainers, follow the others snatchers. If you have any Pokémon that can track well, get them following a scent. When you find them, kick their butts. I will send messages to the people around here to report suspicious persons in black, and then we can have friends helping out too." Weyler finished with a look of a calculated and angry Pokémon.

"Weyler…" Mrs. Turret gasped, stunned at her son's ability to order a rescue team so quickly. Maybe he should have been recruited by Raquaza as well.

"My sister is in danger. Move, trainers!" the white haired boy in glasses addressed the idle trainers.

Jaylon slowly released his hold on the man in black and stood to his feet with a haunted look on his face. "My only friend has been taken…" he whispered. He stared at the ground and clenched his fists. His matted hair fell over his eyes, making it impossible to see his expression.

Forte put his chubby Makuhita on the ground and raised his arms in a shrug. "I don't have any Pokémon that smell scents very well. Do you have any?" the loud boy could keep track of orders and was happy to get going on saving a girl.

Rain the Zangoose made a visible exasperated sign. "Zangoose, Zangoose goose Zan!"

Jaylon didn't move.

"Come on! The longer you wait, the farther away they get!" Weyler came up to the brown haired boy and shoved his shoulder. "You can't crumble right now, not when my sister needs a hero the most!"

Jaylon reached up and tightened his headband. "You're right, I can't give up now. There's still hope." He sighed and fingered his bag. "I wish I still had my Poocheyna, he was good at tracking."

The white Zangoose by his side rolled her eyes and head-butted her trainer. "Goose Zan-Zan goose Zangoose go-goose!" she protested.

"You can? That's great! Ok Rain, you ready to get those low-down bad guys?" Jaylon pumped his fists in victory.

Weyler raised his eyebrows. Did that trainer just understand his Pokémon? That was scientifically rare. Who was this guy? Was this the friend she talked so highly of: Jaylon the helper?

Jaylon and his Zangoose ran off into the woods, followed by the tall, black boy with the Makuhita. Suddenly, everything became quiet in Oldale town.

"Weyler, that was incredible." Mrs. Turret remarked.

"We can talk about that later. We aren't finished here. You and Chammy should watch over the guy in black. I'm going to call up our friends and tell them to look out for suspicious characters. That guy with the Zangoose might be Hiku's friend. We can trust him, but I don't know this other tall guy." Weyler shook his head and grumbled to himself. "I can't believe that we were this close to her and we didn't hear anything until it was too late. My own sister was kidnapped right under my nose…"

...

Jaylon ran as fast as he ever had. His arms and legs pumped as the forest flashed by. Rain raced ahead of him, following the trail of scent. He didn't know that Zangeese could be as good trackers as Poocheynas could, but Rain insisted so.

He suddenly got a random idea and pulled out his Pokénav. He hastily dialed his old teammate's number as he dodged trees and leapt over brush after his Zangoose. The receiver picked up and Vekra's bored voice came over the Pokénav.

"What is it now?" she asked in irritation.

"Hey, Vekra. You know what? Hiku's been snatched." Jaylon gasped for air while he talked and ran.

"What?"

"Yeah, our old teammate has been snatched by weird black suited guys. I and your other old teammate are tracking them right now." Jaylon replied, holding back his burning anger from her. After all, she and him didn't get along very well, why cause an emotion mess?

A pause came back over the receiver. "So what do you want me to do about it?"

"Well, are you near Oldale town?"

"No, I'm stuck in Johto with Latios. We almost got shot down while riding over the Raquaza's base." She grumbled back.

"You're with Latios?" Jaylon's eyes widened. Was this a captain or the real Pokémon?

"So, what now?" Vekra said carefully.

"Tell Latios, heck, tell every high powered person that she's been snatched. Call Raquaza if you can. Everyone in this whacko organization that made us trainers should know. Maybe we can get more people on our side that way." Jaylon rambled as he ran.

Vekra paused again, then said, "Are you sure that will help?"

"Whatever, just let them know. They are on our side, what's the point of not telling them? Ahh!" he yelped as a tree branch whipped at his hand holding the Pokénav. The device flew out of his hand.

"Maku hitahita!" called Maku. The little chubby Pokémon jumped and held up the caught Pokénav. It waved the device happily, as if it had found a new fun toy.

"Thanks," Agent J smiled back at the Pokémon and trainer behind him. "I don't need it right now, so you can just hold it."

Forte kept pace, but had a concerned look on his face. "Jaylon? What are we gonna to do once we catch up with these dudes?"

The brown haired boy continued running with a confused look on his face. "I dunno. I was just hoping to get Hiku back. That means that we'll end up fighting those goons off. Ready, Rain?"

"Zan Zangoose goose Zan [Do I have to hold back on these humans?]" the galloping Pokémon asked back.

"Nope, you can go all out on these guys. I don't think I'll be too mad if you end up killing one of them…" Jaylon replied with a grim smile.

Forte's eyebrows shot up. "Then ya might have ta jus' use _yer_ Pokémon, I've only got Maku here and a little cocoon Pokémon. And they don't know how ta fight. They're contest Pokémon, not killers…" he cleared his throat and thundered, "And how could you say that you didn't care if yore Pokémon killed a person?"

The other boy replied angrily, "Because they want to kill my friend, and I can't let that happen!" he broke off from his motivational speech to gasp for breath. "Rain, how much farther ahead are they?"

"Zan-Zan goose, goose Zangoose [We are getting closer, so keep quiet.]" the white and red Pokémon hissed quietly back.

...

The two men in black grunted and tried to run faster with a girl and her Mudkip. "They are catching up, I can hear them." The black suited man grumbled as Hiku's limp form patted his back repeatedly as he ran.

"If we are caught, our mission will be a failure and our cause will be discovered by this Raquaza person. We have to stay as undercover as we can." The second man (clearly the leader) admitted as he crashed through a large bush. He held the stunned Mudkip in his arms, it was the lighter of the two loads to deliver.

"Does that mean we drop her and get out?" the third man asked. "What about Roger?"

The leader in black rolled his eyes. "This is your first time doing it this way, isn't it? First, we drop the girl off a cliff or slit her throat and provide an easy escape for ourselves. Our chopper will be waiting in Petalburg. Roger can take care of himself. He knows that if he is caught and questioned, he will have to be a noble samurai and kill himself. It's how it goes."

"But what about getting the identities of the other rookies?" the third man asked, still confused over the new order.

"There's one following us, and the other with him might be the third Hoenn rookie. We've got all the info we need." The leader replied slyly. "Now drop her and kill her, then we get away while they are grieving, got it?" he continued running with the Mudkip, not waiting for the first man to do the dirty deed.

The third man nodded and dropped the unconscious girl on the grass.

...

Raquaza sighed to herself and flipped on the news channel on her office TV. She frowned as she saw footages of Pokémon fighting humans in a terrible stand-off. The news caster replied, "Yes, this is indeed terrible to watch. All these poor people trying to live in Viridian and suddenly a swarm of violent Pokémon start wounding -even killing- the people. The residents could only react back with violence. We will keep you posted on this bulletin. Now in other news…"

The woman dressed in green sighed and flipped the channel again. She saw that the next news channel was showing the same video clip with slightly different commentary. She thought to herself, _this is bad… Pokémon attacking humans, and no trainers in Kanto to stop it… what is this world coming to? At least ten years ago trainers were encouraged to travel around, and even before that, everyone looked up to the Lugia Rider. Now humans and Pokémon are drifting apart_…

"We interrupt this story with an emergency broadcast from the Prime Minister of Hoenn's conference room. This is an emergency meeting between the four leaders of the allied regions; Kanto, Johto, Sinnoh, and Hoenn." The TV screen flickered and was replaced with an amateur-looking camera shot showing four men in suits. Raquaza frowned and leaned closer to the screen. _What is this about_?

"This broadcast is a video of a meeting between the four presidents of the Pokémon regions. Each of the men here gave permission for this bulletin to be broadcasted." The news anchor gave the disclaimer, and then the video began.

The first man dressed in a grey suit with a grey-striped tie stood up and held out his hands in greeting to the other three. This man had greying hair and was the prime minister of the Hoenn region. "Welcome. What is this meeting all about?" The camera zoomed in closer to his face and a title appeared on the screen, Caleb Krei, Prime Minister of Hoenn.

"Obviously you haven't watched very much on Kanto channels," replied a silky voice. The camera zoomed out and focused on the one who had spoken. The under screen read: Mitch Walhof, President of Kanto. This man had slicked back black hair and a long black mustache. He looked at least fifty years old. Mr. Walhof continued, "There have been Pokémon rampages all throughout my region. People are dying, and all I can do is send them false hopes…"

"Johto is beginning to see this Pokémon rage as well." Cut in a forty-year old man with a pink suit and blue tie. He certainly was younger than the other two men shown, but he seemed to have a bad eye for color coordination. The under-screen read: Arynn Hawkes, President of Johto. "Lake Rage has always been a tourist attraction to see Gyrados, but now they are much too wild and aggressive to see anymore. One tourist was nearly drowned and bitten in half. We must do something to protect the people!"

The fourth man stayed silent, contemplating the discussion. This man was by default the Sinnoh President, Andrew Rozeboom. He wore a black suit with a red tie. Mr. Rozeboom was the youngest of the leaders, but appeared the most thoughtful.

Mr. Krei shook his head. "I am dreadfully sorry to hear that. What can we do to stop this?"

"Get Pokémon trainers to fight them back." Raquaza said out loud to the TV set. Even though she knew that they couldn't hear her, she wished they did.

The video continued.

Mr. Walhof and Mr. Hawkes nodded to each other and Walhof continued. "We of the Johto and Kanto regions have decided on the best mode of action. If Pokémon are becoming rampant, then we must defend ourselves."

Mr. Hawkes, complete with pink suit, continued to elaborate, "We could set up projects to build walls so the Pokémon can't get through. We can arm the general public in case an attack becomes common. We have even proposed that-"

"-Pokémon hunts are made to be legal again." Walhof finished.

The Prime Minister of Hoenn looked shocked. He adjusted his grey suit to hide his nervousness. "Now, really, isn't that harsh? Pokémon hunts were banished nearly a millennia ago. Isn't it barbaric to turn the rules around to then?"

The forty-year-old Hawkes glanced around nervously. "Not when our people are dying, sir. That's why this meeting was called. We, Walhof and I, wanted the rest of the allied regions to sign a document that states that our citizens will be safe. Our alliance states that all regions must be in accord on any ground-breaking laws brought to the public's attention. We must have all leaders agree on this treaty, even if this includes Pokémon hunts. This is all in self-defense."

Walhof nodded slowly. "Who knows, maybe if the Pokémon rampages are stopped, then fewer trainers would disappear. Maybe the Pokémon are to blame for the disappearances of the Pokémon trainers as well."

Raquaza leaned back and frowned. _Were Pokémon responsible for Pokémon Trainer snatchings? Could that really be the case?_ She was almost sure that it took human intelligence for these kidnappings? Uchiha's letters seemed to confirm that it was chaos in Kanto, but now she was gone, along with any other clues.

The Sinnoh President finally spoke up and the under-screen read: **Andrew Rozeboom, President of Sinnoh.** "If you don't mind, could I share something that some researchers have shown me?" the younger man stood up and removed a folder from his black suit. He flipped it open and began reading, "Some statistics have shown me that the number of registered Pokémon trainers and the number of Pokémon attacks are inversely related."

He flipped over the folder for the others and camera to see. The graph showed a long bar graph. The first division was labeled "Kanto". There was a big, red bar next to a small green bar. The next was labeled "Johto" and it showed a slightly lower red bar and a slightly bigger green bar. Hoenn had the red and green bar even, and Sinnoh showed a much higher green bar than red one.

"Let me explain this. The red bar shows the number of reported Pokémon attacks, and the green bar is showing the number of trainers. Kanto has a low number of trainers and a high rate of attacks, while Sinnoh has many, many trainers and attacks are seldom. My experts say that this is a true inverse relationship. There are no other factors that I can see that can modify this evidence." Andrew Rozeboom laid the folder on the coffee table in front of the others for them to see for themselves.

"That's IT!" Raquaza cried and grinned widely at the TV. "You have certainly got it right on the nail!" she cheered for the younger man that had proven her theory as truth.

The video camera focused in on Walhof and the black haired man shook his head. "I can't accept this as proof, Rozeboom. My people are dying and your idea is to put more lives in danger by rising up trainers? That will only encourage Pokémon attacks!"

"Now look here-" Rozeboom stammered and picked up his folder again. "This plan does not mean putting more lives at risk."

"If Pokémon are responsible for trainer disappearances, then it is dangerous! You are only digging us deeper in our hole." Walhof stood up angrily and threw down the folder.

"No… listen to the Sinnoh President…" Raquaza pleaded again to the TV.

Walhof stomped on the folder's contents and gave Rozeboom an angry stare. "We have to stop these killings as soon as we can! I say we sign a treaty that will allow Pokémon poaching to save the people."

"Calm down now," Mr. Krei held up his hands to stop Walhof. "We will have another meeting after we have all thought about this matter more. I will call you for a later time." the older man bowed politely and the video grew black. Then, the regular news caster concluded the video and launched back into regular news concerning Pokémon attacks, natural disasters, and celebrities.

Raquaza swore inside her head. The only sensible one of the leaders seemed to have been shut down by the desperate ones. How could instant gratification come before a logical answer? Were Pokémon really to blame for trainer 'snatchings'?

"Things aren't looking good for us, huh?" a new voice started Raquaza to whip around in her seat. She smiled as she recognized the person.

"Hey, did you just see that?" she indicated to the TV set.

The arrival jumped on the couch next to her and nodded. He was serious, but not for long. He was a blonde boy with normal, modern clothes on, but his purple eyes betrayed him as a young, spunky person. "Yup. Things are taking a turn for the worse, especially for my kind."

"What do you mean?" Raquaza raised her eyebrows.

The boy shrugged and laughed a bit. "We've got to watch out for crazy people like that Walhof guy."

"I thought that was the norm for you." Raquaza laughed back at him.

He joined her giggles. "True…" he admitted.

"So, how's life, Kasmir?" Raquaza asked politely. "You look different."

Kasmir shrugged and smiled in a carefree way. "I can look the same if you want me to." Suddenly, his appearance changed and he took on a more childish look. Now he had a flowing green cape and medieval looking clothes.

Raquaza punched his arm lightly. "I swear, you are my favorite Pokémon in the world!"

Kasmir's look changed back to his first appearance and he gave a happy look. "Really? I didn't know that, Corinne."

"Yes, I like your kind of Pokémon… JUST DON'T CALL ME BY MY NAME! IT'S RAQUAZA NOW!" She suddenly changed her expression and shouted at him. She shook her blonde head and sighed. "You keep on forgetting that I'm Raquaza now, and that you can't call me that."

Kasmir looked a bit scared, but recovered quickly. "I see that you are still your old, crazy self."

"Yeah, and you're a naïve Pokémon from the past who wishes he was a human…" Raquaza added darkly.

The boy/Pokémon screwed up his face in a pout. "So?"

The door opened and a figure walked in. Both occupants turned to see who had walked in on their conversation. The newest arrival was a blonde as well. She was an older woman with long, blonde hair. In fact, she much resembled Corin- erm, Raquaza. The woman sighed and said, "Really, Raquaza, you shouldn't be talking with friends while on duty."

"I know, Raquaza," the first woman replied back. These two similar women had agreed to take on the job as Raquaza together, so they shared the same name and had to address each other by that new name. "But it wasn't my fault that I was talking with him…"

Kasmir jumped up, nearly floating off the ground. "What? Hey!"

"And you," the second Raquaza addressed Kasmir in a serious tone, "no Pokémon are allowed in the study."

Kasmir crossed his arms defiantly. "No problem here, I AM a human…"

To prove her point, the second Raquaza pulled out a Pokédex and the Pokémon encyclopedia beeped. "Mewtwo, the genetic Pokémon…"

Kasmir sighed and held up his hands as he floated off the ground. "Ok, fine. I'm a clone of a super clone of Mew… What does that make me then?"

"A Chimchar's uncle?" the first Raquaza smirked.

The second Raquaza remained calm and placid. "Kasmir, you know the rules. You can chat all you want with her after Raquaza is done with her work." She turned her attention to the first and younger Raquaza, "And you ought to pay more attention to your work. We have to pass as one person, and I will not have you goofing off."

The first Raquaza sighed. It was hard to pretend to be such a serious person. "Yes, Raquaza…"

The second, serious Raquaza glanced at the human-looking Mewtwo. "Shouldn't you get going?"

The purple eyed boy sighed and waved goodbye. He suddenly vanished due to a teleport attack.

The second Raquaza sighed and eyed Corinne carefully. "You were having a good chat with the Pokémon?"

The first Raquaza nodded, determined to not show too much emotion to her counterpart.

"He's quite taken to you if you couldn't tell…"

The first Raquaza shrugged. "He was a friend of my brother's…"

"Well, while you and him were talking, I got a call from Latios. First off, he sends his regrets once again that he will not be present for a while. And secondly, he heard through the grapevine that Hiku has been 'snatched'." The second Raquaza added coolly.

"What?" Corinne jumped. "No, not Hiku…" Hiku had been her choice of trainer when the spy cams were sent out over Hoenn. That girl had the making of a loving trainer. But now… "Is there any other word? How could this have happened?" First Uchiha, now Hiku?

"I don't know, the news was fresh, so I don't know what could have happened. Hiku may be dead or disappeared like Uchiha. Either way, we have to get those rookies somewhere safer and teach them proper safety." The second and older Raquaza kept her voice even. "Send out the Pokémon to pick them up, wherever they are. We cannot have the rookies killed."

"But it was our original plan for the rookies to figure out the life of a trainer on their own." Corinne/Raquaza protested.

"It's far too late for that now."


	11. Chapter 11, Hiku's Fate

**A/N: last chapter I introduce a loveable (maybe) character named Kasmir. He's a character I made in the past and I can't seem to leave him out of this story.**

**Anyways, it's crunch time for Hiku! **

**Chapter 11**

The man in black dropped the limp form of Hiku in the grass and quickly pulled out a knife. He would quickly slit her throat and then take off after his partner to escape to safety. He didn't like it, but it was his duty.

Suddenly, several things happened at once.

A white and red Zangoose crashed through the brush and made a bee-line for the man. Secondly, the brown haired trainer came crashing after the Pokémon. Thirdly and most of all strange, the air rippled and a person with blonde hair materialized in a tree. The branch snapped and the strange teleporting person landed on top of the man in black, stopping him from wounding Hiku.

The trainer and Pokémon stood back and stared as well. They weren't expecting someone else to help them.

The man in black cursed and flailed his arm wildly, hoping to wound Hiku and the strange boy who had foiled his plans. He grinned as he felt it driving into flesh.

The strange teleporting boy saw that the man had dug his knife into Hiku's chest. He suddenly became angry, face contorted in a demon-like rage. The strange boy roared and lifted the man in black up in the air by his collar. A strange, blue orb of power glowed at the boy's hand and he plunged it into the enemy's stomach.

The man wheezed in pain and fell to the ground.

The strange boy glared intensely at the snatcher. "You sicken me, fiend! Trying to kill your own kind!" a purple aura grew around him and the man was lifted into the air yet again by a psychic attack. The man was lifted high into the sky, and then dropped back to earth.

The man in black fell to the ground on his head with a sickening crunch and laid very still.

The strange boy stood in his same position until he had calmed down, then he bent over the wounded trainer.

Jaylon could barely believe what he had seen. The rookie glanced over at Forte and the taller boy shook his head, indicating that he had no idea of what this was either.

The brown haired trainer waited a couple seconds before quietly stammering, "Who-who are you?"

The strange teleporting boy looked up from Hiku's form and jumped to his feet. "Oh Great Aaron, I didn't know I had an audience…" he smiled nervously and asked, "Hi, how are you?"

"How did you do that?" Jaylon didn't lose his surprise.

The boy opened and closed his mouth several times without making a sound.

"Zangoose Zan-Zan Zangoose goose, goose Zan Zangoose [he's a strong Pokémon, I can smell it.]" Rain tensed by Jaylon's side.

The boy smiled again and rubbed his neck. "Well seeing that you saw me in combat, there's no point in lying to you." He opened his eyes and they flashed purple. "I'm Kasmir." He waited for a reply, as if a simple name could account for the strangeness he had showed earlier.

"Meaning…" Jaylon left off.

Kasmir raised his eyebrows. "Really, you haven't heard about me? But I've been known in Kanto, I grew up there, and I helped the Lugia Rider in the Razzen battle in Sinnoh…"

Jaylon had no clue what this kid was talking about. "You are pretty much speaking Pokéspeak right now."

"I am? Crap!" the purple eyed boy jumped up.

Forte gave Jaylon another weird glance.

Rain came up and sniffed Kasmir. She growled softly, "Goose, goose Zan, Zan-Zan Zangoose [you certainly smell like a Pokémon…]"

"What, you are a Pokémon?" Jaylon was even more confused. "But you look like a normal human…"

Kasmir blinked several times, then ran up close to Jaylon happily, "Cool, I didn't know you could understand Pokémon too!" he corrected himself and stepped back. "But that isn't important; your friend is badly hurt. I'll get all you guys to a great place to heal up!" he winked his purple eyes charmingly.

"What are you…?" Jaylon started, but the air had become waving and hard to move through. He felt panic rising up in his throat, but it couldn't escape. The world twisted and compressed all around Jaylon. The sensation persisted several seconds more before it broke.

Forte, Jaylon, Maku, and Rain fell to the ground after the strain of the teleport attack.

Kasmir on the other hand seemed impervious to the effect. He picked up the wounded and drugged Hiku gingerly. "I'll get her some medical help, and then I'll introduce myself to you a little better. Don't move, ok?" he turned around and pranced off lightly.

Agent J was happy to catch his breath on the strange tiled floor he was laying on. So many things had happened so fast, it was starting to feel as if he was in Wonderland. He closed his eyes and soon began to nap, despite being on a cold, hard floor.

...

Kasmir, wounded Hiku in tow, ran as fast as he could back up to the study where the two Raquaza's were. He dodged by several other captains and undercover trainers that Raquaza employed. He didn't stop to talk with anyone, even though he loved being social.

He floated up the winding stairs and ran into the room outside the study. He kicked at the door and cried out, "Cor- erh, Raquaza! I got Hiku here! Come QUICK!"

The study door flew open and the two Raquaza's ran out. The younger Raquaza put her hand to her mouth. "Kasmir, how on earth did you…?"

The Human-looking Mewtwo shrugged. "I knew that Hiku was in danger already by listening in on Second Raquaza's call, and then I thought, I could find her in Oldale, 'cause that's where she lives. So I teleported over and ended up saving her," he paused and glanced at the red spot on her chest, "At least, I _kind of_ saved her…"

"You genius!" the younger Raquaza threw herself at him and she hugged the Mewtwo. "After knowing you as a naïve little Pokémon, you actually have some sense! Great job, Kasmir!"

Kasmir reddened and smiled a bit. "Thanks, I guess…"

The second Raquaza walked up and inspected the still unconscious girl. "She needs medical help immediately. Take her to our medic, Kasmir."

The boy/Pokémon nodded and teleported quickly. He reappeared in the infirmary of Raquaza'a hideout. It was a large, white tiled room with many beds but only one medic cleaning medical tools. The said medic, a man with chocolate brown hair and an Audino at his side, looked up from his work.

Kasmir wasted no time; he quickly explained to the medic what had happened, then teleported away again to find the two boys and their Pokémon. _Boy, this day is full of surprises! _He thought to himself. _I didn't think Corinne would hug me like that_. He teleported back to the main entrance of Raquaza's hideout and found the boys and their Pokémon exactly where he had left them.

The Mewtwo smiled and poked the sleeping form of Jaylon Wicklow and Forte. They didn't stir from their sleep; neither did the Zangoose or the Makuhita. _Maybe the Teleporting wore them out… that has happened before._ He thought. _Maybe I should have the Medic look after them too, and then I can find them when they wake up. I'm sure they will be full of questions, and I can't keep a secret_.


	12. Chapter 12, Uchiha's Confession

**Chapter 12**

Vekra had had enough of Johto. She hated that she couldn't take out her Pokémon in public or ask someone to a duel. She didn't know what had happened to Hiku and hated thinking about it. Furthermore, she was getting paranoid about the people in Olivine city. What if the people who glanced up at Phoebe's house were suspicious of Pokémon trainers staying there?

It had been nearly a day since Vekra had landed in Olivine City in Johto. And what she had seen was not to her liking. Sure, it was a pleasant town with the sea nearby, but a Miltank herd had charged through the town. There were marks where the Miltanks had ripped at the human houses with their horns. And Vekra couldn't do anything but watch it. Pokémon Trainers were in great danger here. In Hoenn, people liked seeing the rare trainer. But here in Johto, they were condemned and driven out of town. That very thing had happened when a trainer had tried to stop the Miltank charge. The trainer had pulled up a Primeape and ordered his Pokémon to calm the charging cow Pokémon down. The townsfolk saw his Pokémon and forced him out of town, even while the Miltanks were ravaging the buildings.

The Miltanks were eventually rounded up by the farmer, and no one was killed, but it still felt weird to Vekra Ashcroft to know that someone tried to help but was pushed away because he had a Pokémon.

And finally, to add to Vekra's frustrations, Latios/DJ seemed content to stay in this city. He chatted with Phoebe and went out to shop and talk with the residents. Vekra did think that it was weird that a former Elite Four from Hoenn would end up as a waitress.

Vekra sat on the spare bedroom bed. She had called out Zuni the Grovyle to pass the time. He was a quirky Pokémon and she watched him act his normal self out of pure boredom. She was annoying when her Pokémon was quirky during a battle, but now that she had nothing else to do, why not let the Grovyle be himself?

Zuni crooned and glanced around the room. He called out his name and jumped to the dresser. He landed on top of it, scattering some pieces of jewelry along the way. He observed the room from this new angle and crooned once again. "Gro…"

A toy in the back of the room suddenly jerked. Zuni saw the movement and jumped at the doll to examine it. Vekra wasn't scared; she had seen this thing happen before. Thanks to Phoebe's infatuation with Ghost-types, Vekra had learned that there were around five Ghost Pokémon living here; all of them had been part of her Elite Team.

The toy bear jerked again and stood upright. Zuni jumped back and cried nervously, "Vyle!"

A shadow appeared around the teddy bear and a Banette jumped out of the toy. The teddy bear fell to the ground, an inanimate object once again. The doll ghost Pokémon chuckled at the surprise on Zuni's face. "Banette bane, bane!"

"It's Phoebe's Banette, she's a ghost type-trainer. She can get away with having Pokémon in her house because they are ghosts and can turn invisible." Vekra sighed as she told her Pokémon what was going on.

Zuni didn't like being laughed at by the other Pokémon. He lunged at the Ghost Pokémon with leaf blades blazing.

In reply, the ghost disappeared into the air and Zuni ran headlong into the wall. He crumbled to the ground and mumbled, "Grovyle gro, gro vyle gro!"

"I know; it's not the nicest Pokémon to fight, is it?" Vekra guessed Zuni was angry it had disappeared. She sighed and lay down on the bed.

Zuni the Grovyle got up and rubbed its head. He saw his trainer relaxing and thought to join her. The green gecko Pokémon jumped up on the bed and curled up by her head. He closed his yellow eyes and began to sleep.

Vekra didn't see any harm in following suit. She closed her eyes as well and willed herself to sleep. It was hard though; so many things were running around in her head about trainers and getting to Raquaza. She thought back to being shot at while riding 'Latios's Staraptor, then about the trainer being driven out of town. Then the Banette and Dusclops that lived here with Phoebe came to her mind as well. She shifted her pose and tried again to sleep. _Why can't I be like a Pokémon and not worry about things so much_?

A hurried knock came at her door. She opened her eyes slowly and sat back up. _Oh well, I couldn't sleep anyways…_ "Come in," she mumbled. Zuni blinked sleepily beside her.

'Latios'/DJ opened her door and half-shouted at her, "Come now. There's a story on our operations in Hoenn! It's on the news! Come quickly!" He turned and ran back down the stairs.

_What in the world was he talking about?_ Vekra shrugged and walked at her own pace to the downstairs TV set. She found it to be blaring at top volume and Latios crouched close to the screen. "What are you..?"

Latios jumped up and pulled her to the TV. "Watch!" he commanded.

Vekra soon saw why he was so on edge.

"There has been evidence that this claim is true. Fallabor town residents don't deny that there was a group of people operating in the town, though no one knew what they were working on." The news reporter said, and then the screen flicked to an interview with a Fallabor town resident.

"I saw many people working in this building right behind me," an older woman pointed to a shack in the background of the soot-covered town, "But I never knew what was going on. You see, the people weren't all that talkative."

The interview flickered off and the reporter continued, "But now we have a video tape of one of the criminals who was involved in this fiendish plot. Who knew that one of these Zangoose torturers would come out and confess? Maybe this character is coming down the road of recovery."

Vekra had no idea what was going on. Zangoose torturers?

The image flickered again and a video of a woman with navy blue hair and a serious/sad expression came on. She began to talk, but her words were unheard over 'Latios'.

"Oh ARCEUS! Uchiha!" he ran at the screen as if he could pull her out of the tube. "She's alive, but… no…" he continued blubbering to the TV set.

Vekra only caught a few words here and there over the sniveling. "We were working on…" and "Never meant any harm…" and "Zangoose. Successful translation…"

Vekra understood now, this Uchiha person was his close girlfriend. She had been snatched, but now she was still alive. But now she was talking about something that made 'Latios' sob. Or was he crying because he was happy she was alive and sad she was betraying them?

Phoebe, on her day off, came from the kitchen and complained, "Come on, turn down that soap opera!"

"Uchiha is ratting us out on our only questionable deed. Now Raquaza's group will be despised!" Latios clamored.

The video of Uchiha flickered away and the reporter turned the commenting and further discussion to the anchors. The three anchors began to talk it over, but Vekra didn't care to hear it. She turned off the TV in hopes the captain would calm down.

Phoebe, seeing that Latios was moping about something, came over to the man. "What are you talking about? I don't understand, and yelling like that will only make the neighbors think I'm turning my house into an asylum."

The brown haired man, complete with stubble and burning green eyes, finally conjured up enough control to speak without wailing. "When Raquaza's organization was still young and this trainer snatchings hadn't become epidemic, she started a program to try to finally create a Pokémon translating device. If one such thing could be made, human could understand what Pokémon were saying, and create a better understanding of the two species." He paused again before continuing, "Uchiha and I went up the Fallabor Town, along with a team of scientists. We had orders to not talk with the residents. Our operation was secret.

"We started to create electronic devices that could translate what a Pokémon would say into our language, but it didn't work out well. We needed test subject Pokémon to use, and there were many close by Zangeese…" he shook his head in sorrow. "We captured some Zangeese and bred them for tests. We tried devices that would go into our ears or into the throats of the Zangeese. Many tests failed and many young Zangeese died…

"But a new team of scientists came in and progress jumped. We created a device that worked perfectly, but there were many catches. First, the inserted device in the Pokémon's throat only worked on a few species. Second, only a few people could hear the device. It only works if the Pokémon and human have the same blood type.

"That was as far as the research and money went. We went back to Raquaza's place. Some people like Uchiha brought back Zangeese eggs for themselves. And some of the test-subject Pokémon were freed back into the wild." He took a deep breath. "That was the closest we had ever gotten to finding a translating device, but Raquaza insisted that this breakthrough only be used for our organization. But now Uchiha, who I thought was dead, comes back to life and uncovers the whole operation…" he buried his head in his arms and bowed to the ground in a pose of complete mourning.

Vekra jumped as a realization hit her. Jaylon had acted like he could hear his _Zangoose_! That Zangoose must have been one of the escaped experiments once the operation was called off! And somehow Jaylon had been lucky enough to have the same blood type as it.

Phoebe didn't know what to say. She glanced around and bit her tongue. "Maybe if it was secret, then you shouldn't have told us…"

'Latios' waved her off from his fetal pose on the floor. "It's all over the news, there's no harm in talking about it now…"

**Wow, I just amazed myself there. I didn't plan ahead what makes it possible for Jaylon and Rain to be able to communicate until I typed it. Please review! **


	13. Chapter 13, Kasmir's Tale

**This chapter will be revealing a lot of secrets I have been making and will also talk about the past events of the Lugia Rider and Kasmir's past. Yes, he is a Mewtwo, please read about him and bear with Jaylon as Kasmir tells the story in a really hard to follow way. :P**

**Chapter 13**

Agent J woke up suddenly, all the past events crashed down on his psyche like a ten ton weight. "HIKU!" he yelled and sat up quickly. In his haste, he knocked heads with some person close by. Both boys groaned and rubbed their wounded foreheads.

Jaylon opened his eyes and examined where he was. He didn't remember coming to an infirmary. He was still in his regular clothes, and his trainer pack and Pokéballs were sitting on a nearby table. He scanned the room again and found the person he had clashed heads with. Jaylon flinched as he recognized the blonde kid with purple eyes. Somehow this person looked like a person, but was a Pokémon.

Kasmir rubbed his head and admitted, "I didn't think you woke up like that. Ow… you have a hard head."

"You! You Pokémon!" The brown haired rookie scooted away from the strange boy and found that there were railings on the bed, preventing his escape. "What do you want?" visions of this boy flinging up the man in black into the air and letting him crash back to earth haunted him.

Kasmir smiled and laughed. "I'm not going to hurt you! Come on, I only hurt stupid humans that try to kill other humans and Pokémon. You are under Raquaza's favor, so I can't say I hate you." He paused and blinked at the rookie. "Are you feeling better? You slept pretty much throughout yesterday and last night."

Jaylon relaxed. This Pokémon who could speak human words was friendly. "I slept that long?" he wanted to pull out his Pokénav to double check. He paused and faced Kasmir. "What kind of Pokémon can look and talk like a human?"

The boy with blonde hair shrugged in reply, "Any number of powerful psychic type Pokémon. I met a Latios and Latias, and they could do that really well. They kind of taught me how to do it actually."

Jaylon became excited. He loved Legendary Pokémon. If he managed to catch one, he could try to use its power to find out what had happened to his parents! They had left a long time ago and were never heard from again, but a Pokémon could find them! "You met a real Latias and Latios? Can I capture one? Where are they?"

"Umm…" Kasmir looked uneasy. "You like Legendary Pokémon, or just Latios and Latias?"

"All Legendries!" Jaylon said happily. "Please help me, Mr. Pokémon!"

_He must think I'm a Kadabra or Hypno, not a legendary Pokémon myself. I certainly don't want to be captured by a trainer, maybe I'll tell him I'm a clone of Mewtwo once I can trust him._ Kasmir thought to himself, and then said out loud, "I'm sorry, I don't know where they are. And besides, the ones I knew are already dead."

"Dead? Legendary Pokémon die?"

Kasmir nodded. "Even though they are legendary and can live for a long time, Pokémon still die. But Legendries can breed and have colonies of young Suicunes or any other rare Pokémon, then one takes turns of staying in the place where they are spotted. Like Lugia for example, there can be many little Lugias in the secret Legendary Forest, but only one Lugia guards the Orange Isles. One Lugia was even found in the Whirl Isles of Johto. And how could the Lugia Rider exist if there was only one Lugia in the world?"

Jaylon blinked several times to accept this information. _How many other people could know of this? This could only be Pokémon knowledge!_ He frowned at the Lugia Rider mentioned again. "What are you talking about, who is the Lugia Rider?"

Kasmir nodded again, thoughtfully. "Hoenn never met him, but he was pretty much the savior of Sinnoh. I worked with him for a little bit. He was a great guy…" Kasmir glanced over and saw that this answer didn't work for Jaylon. "Ok," he smiled at the rookie, "I'll tell you my story and the Lugia rider story, but it's really long. Make yourself comfortable."

Jaylon nodded and lay down in his hospital bed. He was wide awake from sleeping for so long.

Kasmir cleared his throat and stared off into the distance. "I'll start with my life story, since I was born a long time ago."

"But you seem so young." Jaylon put in. This Pokémon sure acted like a teenager.

Kasmir laughed. "It's more of my naïveté. In human years, I've lived for around thirty years. But according to my birthdate, I'm two thousand and thirty."

Jaylon sat back up. "What in the world? Not even a Wartortle can live that long!"

"Back to my story," Kasmir waved his finger, "My story actually took place before I hatched. I heard from other people what happened at my birth. You see, there was this super clone of Mew called Mewtwo. He had evaded Pokémon scientists and trainers after many encounters with them. One time, Mewtwo was caught off-guard and a scientist got some DNA from him. This scientist went to Giovanni, director of Team Rocket, and two Pokémon eggs were artificially made from the genetic sample. Giovanni's plan was to raise two Mewtwos and crush all trainers that stood in his way of power.

"The Time Traveling Celebi heard of this and saw a terrible future if that came true, so it flew in Team Rocket's base and stole one of the eggs. With egg in tow, Celebi time traveled to a safer time, the ancient times of the Aura Guardians. It gave the Mewtwo egg to Sir Aaron, the leader of the Aura Guardians and personal assistant to the Queen. Then I hatched." Kasmir smiled proudly.

Jaylon's mouth fell. "Oh my heavens, YOU'RE A MEWTWO!"

Kasmir nodded and his human form melted away. Kasmir still had his purple eyes, but now looked much more Pokémon. He was a purple humanoid Pokémon with large thighs, a deep purple tail, a second neck-like attachment from his head to his shoulders, and the chest pad. Kasmir, still the same personality, waved his three-fingered hand. "Yup, I'm a Mewtwo."

"I MUST capture you!" Jaylon lunged for his trainer bag to find an empty Pokéball.

Kasmir panicked and lifted the trainer bag with his psychic powers out of Jaylon's reach. "No, I don't want to be captured! Listen to my story and don't fight me, please." He brought the trainer bag over to himself and put it on the floor. He met Jaylon's look and smiled nervously. "Come on, I'm a friend, no need to put us in a master-Pokémon relationship!"

Jaylon didn't lose his awe. "But you are the first Legendary Pokémon I've ever seen, much less met _and_ talked to!"

"Nice to meet you, I am Kasmir. Now keep on listening please." The Mewtwo resumed his human look and tried to continue in his story.

"Why do I need to know your story?" Jaylon asked; upset that he couldn't catch the first Legendary he met.

The human looking Pokémon paused and shrugged. "Then you'll know more about this organization and its past. And don't you want to know about your new friend?" he smiled and pointed to himself. He started talking again regardless of the answer. "Sir Aaron didn't know what I was, and neither did his Lucario. They decided to raise me nonetheless. When I learned to talk human-speak, I was taken on a quest to find Latios and Latias. If I learned from them how to look human, then I could blend in with the other students learning to be aura guardians as well. I learned and I came back as a new student to the academy."

"You had an academy for Aura guardians?" Jaylon said disbelievingly.

"Yeah, we had to fight the dark aura guardians." Kasmir explained quickly, then continued in his haphazard tale, "I grew up in that castle and I made friends with Samech. He was kind of like me; he could turn into a Giratina. But that was because he was from a clan of people who could have Pokémon powers and change into them.

"Then a huge battle was coming up, and Aaron could only think of one way to stop it. Before he took off to the tree of beginning, he found Celebi and told it to take me back to my real time. Before I left, I was given a Riolu egg to send to the future by a worried Lucario family. And a young Riolu grabbed onto my leg as I was whisked away to the future. The young Riolu named Flint ended up somewhere else and I came to the palace again, but two thousand years in the future. Samech came as well, with his baby Dialga. I met a girl at the castle and gave her the Riolu egg. Her name was Myra. Then she, Samech and I had little adventures around Sinnoh." He paused and laughed, "It took a long time to get used to the future! Myra helped us a lot in understanding the place."

He continued, "Well, it turns out that the other Mewtwo egg hatched into my sister and she was pure evil. Then Samech's evil brother from the past came to this time, and the two evil siblings teamed up against us. We fought them off several times. Then we ended up caught up in the Lugia Rider's problems.

"Kyle the Lugia Rider was a great kid, and he had a group of friends following and helping him out throughout Sinnoh. He had a part of his adventures too, and we ended up on the same team when Team Galactic created a new raptor kind of Pokémon called Razzen, and their evolutions of Spinezen and Rexen. They were hard to fight off, but they were all killed in the end, at least I think." He slapped his head and groaned to himself, "Oh, I almost forgot, the little Riolu called Flint ended up with one of the Lugia Rider's friends, and Myra's egg hatched into a girl Riolu named Kythra. And team Galactic had an evil Lucario that knew Flint from way back when named Arri…

"And the Ethrandeer Three prophecy! How could I forget that? The Flint Lucario ended up being a fulfiller of the prophecy, along with a Gallade and a Garchomp. Their destiny was to rid the world of the Razzen. They did, but the three Pokémon died to do so. And the Lugia rider died in that last fight too. It was really sad. My evil sister and Samech's evil brother went away, and Samech went alone too. Myra ended up marrying one of the Lugia Rider's friends and I ended up here."

Jaylon was so confused by this tirade of names and fates that he didn't know what to make out of the story.

"So here we are, the Lugia Rider's sister is 'Raquaza', Milo -one of the Lugia Rider's friends- married Myra and is helping work out lots of the technical and computer stuff. Diego, another Lugia Rider friend, is 'Garchomp' (a captain under Raquaza). And I'm the Pokémon who runs errands and keeps people company." He smiled and indicated that he was finished.

Jaylon could not take in this disorganized tale he just heard. "So, you are an Aura Guardian?"

"Yup!" he smiled yet again.

"OK, that was about all I understood." The rookie shook his head. "And this Galactic is an evil team in Sinnoh, right?"

Kasmir confirmed the positive again. "Team Galactic all went down due to their misuse of the new Pokémon. The Razzen turned on their creators and that was it."

"I don't know what a Razzen is or what this Lugia Rider had to do with stuff and an Ethrandeer three? Yeah, you'll have to run that by me again."

The human/Pokémon shrugged. "I'm not a good story teller. Ask Milo, the computer genius nerd guy. He can tell you about the Lugia Rider better than I can." He jumped up to his feet and grinned. "Want to see this hideout that Raquaza and her helpers built?"

Jaylon shrugged back. "What else am I going to do?" he suddenly had a thought, "Hey, where is Forte?"

"Your friend? Oh, him." Kasmir put his hand to his chin. "That guy woke up before you. He went to take a tour with 'Kingdra'. I should also tell you that besides Codename 'Latios' and Vekra, all the trainers that are working with Raquaza are here. And we happen to be located near Johto's Silver Mountain."

"I don't know anything about Johto," the brown haired boy got out of his bed and grabbed the trainer bag on the floor. "In fact, I'm beginning to feel like I hardly know anything."

"That's the spirit!" Kasmir patted his back. "Now, let's take a look around here, and I'll introduce some people to you."

"Ok," Jaylon mumbled as he pulled out his Pokéball. Kasmir flinched at the sight of it. Jaylon didn't throw it at the Mewtwo, but instead called out the Pokémon inside. The white and red cat-ferret Pokémon blinked awake and stretched. "Let's go and explore this place, ok Rain?" Agent J addressed his Pokémon.

"Goose [fine…]" the female Zangoose mumbled back.


	14. Chapter 14, The Tour

**Chapter 14**

Kasmir jumped into the air and hovered longer than a normal human would in the air. "Ok, first stop on the tour is; Hiku."

Jaylon's eyes grew wide. "I almost forgot! Is she ok? Did she make it…?" he clenched his fists and looked serious.

The Mewtwo nodded, "She survived thanks to my accidental landing on the thug. But I haven't been able to find her starter Pokémon; Mudkip. The third goon must've kidnapped it." he beckoned to a white door. "She's in here."

Jaylon pushed through the door and saw that this room was designated for more critical patients. There were several IVs going into Hiku's arm and she had an oxygen mask over her face. The rookie trainer wasted no time in getting to her side. "Hiku…" he pleaded with the sleeping figure.

Rain the Zangoose staying back from the bed and growled at Kasmir. "Zangoose-oose Zan Zangoose goose [What kind of Pokémon are you?]" she glared at Kasmir with her black eyes.

Kasmir tried to be friendly back. "I'm a Mewtwo; a legendary Pokémon. I'm not native to Hoenn… more like Kanto."

Rain continued to growl at him.

At a loss for finding peace with the Pokémon, Kasmir walked over to Jaylon.

Another person joined the scene; the medic with chocolate brown hair. He smiled sadly and asked the trainer, "Is she your friend?"

"Yeah, what happened to her? How soon will she be able to be back to normal?" Jaylon didn't look up from Hiku's sleeping face.

"She was stabbed in the chest, shy of the heart. Her ribs received some wounds and her right lung was punctured. But she was taken in quickly, so she will recover quicker than other cases of a punctured lung. I'd give her a week to get back to her training." The medic replied calmly, in a voice that could soothe any upset person.

The brown haired trainer breathed a sigh of relief. "Good, it's much better than if she was… a week's worth waiting."

Kasmir expected to be thanked for the quick delivery of Hiku, but the rookie was too relieved and focused on his teammate that the human-looking Pokémon received none. But that was fine with the Mewtwo; he could feel very strong emotions coming from the boy about Hiku. _Were they a couple?_ The curious Pokémon didn't ask. "We can continue exploring when you are ready to go," Kasmir admitted softly, so as not to disturb the moment building between sleeping Hiku and Jaylon.

Jaylon looked up and realized that he had been kneeling at Hiku's bed for several moments longer then intended. He stood up slowly and sighed. "Ok, we can go. I just want to see her again when she's awake."

Kasmir contradicted Jaylon's request, "Sorry, 'Raquaza' has dibs. Hiku is the first trainer to survive a snatching, so naturally the leader would want to get her story first, as well as you and your Forte friend's. But after Raquaza is done talking to her, you can." He beckoned to the trainer, "Ok, follow me."

The two boys left out the way they had come, then took a different door out to a main hallway. The floors were all tiled to make a mosaic of a Raquaza Pokémon twisting through the sky. Kasmir lead the way around and stopped when he saw a young, blue haired boy and a man in Garchomp cosplay.

"Hey, Dieg- I mean 'Garchomp'. And this is 'Gible', right? HI!" the human-looking Mewtwo smiled warmly.

The man in Garchomp cosplay waved with his finned arms, but kept an even voice. "What are you doing around here, Kasmir? Aren't you supposed to be finding 'Latios' and Vekra? We need them here."

"I am?" the Pokémon raised his eyebrows. "I thought they were coming in on their own power… is something wrong?"

Jaylon didn't care if Vekra was in trouble; she had been a snob to him in the beginning. There were so many reasons **not** to like her that Jaylon tuned out on the conversation.

"They were shot at in Johto. They've been stuck there for only a day or so, and they are staying with Phoebe, but we need everyone together for Raquaza's announcement." 'Garchomp's eyes darkened under his Garchomp helmet. "You _did_ see it, didn't you?"

Kasmir was completely in the dark about this. "No, why are you so grim? What happened?"

Garchomp rolled his eyes. "You'll see in Raquaza's emergency meeting. She DVR'd it."

"Technology… it's really confusing, isn't it?" remarked the Pokémon. He had been born in Aura Guardian times, so he was still unused to computers and satellite TV.

"This isn't the time to be goofing off, Kasmir. This could topple our whole operation…" 'Garchomp' shook his head and gave a very heavy sigh.

The boy with blue hair was looking at Jaylon's Zangoose with interest. He walked over to Rain and lifted his hand for her to sniff it. Rain ignored him at first, but caught a scent of other Zangeese on him. She trotted over to the young boy codenamed 'Gible' and began to sniff up the foreign scent.

Jaylon noticed his Zangoose was introducing herself to this boy, so Jaylon joined in. "Hey, this is my Zangoose, Rain."

'Gible' ignored Agent J and pulled out two red and white balls. He addressed the Pokémon instead, "Would you like to meet my Zangeese?"

Rain pushed her nose on the button to release the Pokémon inside. After two flashes of red light, two smaller and younger Zangeese appeared at 'Gible's feet.

"I didn't know you had a Zangoose, two Zangeese at that." Jaylon admitted and watched carefully to see if his Pokémon would be violent to the other Pokémon. He was ready to stand in if things went bad.

The twin Zangeese were surprised to see another Zangoose and cowered by their trainer. After a moment, Pieces (the female twin) came up to Rain: ears lowered and crawling close to the ground. Pieces squeaked slightly and rolled over to show the older Zangoose that Rain was superior. Rain the Zangoose seemed quite pleased and licked the younger one's head. Gemini, the other young Zangoose, copied his sister's movements and received a lick as well.

Now that the three Pokémon were acquainted, the twins called to each other and waved their tails happily. Rain seemed happy and began to play with the kits. They play-fought by tackling each other and nipping.

Agent J had never seen Rain more happy. He smiled at the younger boy. "Where'd you get two young Zangeese like that?"

'Gible' finally acknowledged him and said quietly, "My sister gave them to me."

"You must have a really great sister." Jaylon said as he tried to pet one of the small Zangeese twins. The young Pokémon ducked away quickly and playfully ran around Rain and swatted at her fluffy tail.

The blue haired boy became sullen. "Not really…" he stood back up and returned his Pokémon. Without another word, he walked away.

Rain was left without playmates and she sat down in a pout.

The two other trainers walked on to another part of the hideout. Jaylon watched them go. "Are we _both_ unaware of this thing right now?" he asked his Pokémon guide.

"Uh-huh." The purple eyed Pokémon agreed. "What ever happened, it wasn't a good thing." He made eye contact with Jaylon and said quickly, "After I show you around, I have to find 'Latios' and Vekra. This thing that we missed could be really serious; I've never seen Diego-I-mean 'Garchomp' in that dark of a mood."

Jaylon nodded. _It must be great to be a psychic Pokémon. You can teleport anywhere and use your mind to move things. This Mewtwo guy is very friendly and really powerful. I wish I could capture him, but I guess if he considers me a friend already, he can help me find my parents. He can't seem to keep a secret. From him I already know that 'Garchomp's real name is Diego._ "Ok, let's go then."

...

As Kasmir was walking around the base, showing Jaylon around and introducing him to the trainers, an important figure walked up to them.

"Kasmir, showing the newbie around, I see?" a calm, female voice said from behind him.

The Mewtwo turned around and gave the speaker a big smile. "Hi, Raquaza."

Jaylon jumped and whipped around to see the leader of this entire operation. This person had given him two Pokémon a long time ago (it felt). This person had organized Hiku, himself, and Vekra into a team of rookies set out to understand the true role of a trainer. Jaylon felt giddy to finally meet this figurehead. "Raquaza…" he choked and examined the lady in a tight, green dress with yellow circles. She had a green helmet on, with long blonde hair coming out from underneath. He couldn't see her eyes, but her presence was enough to command attention. It was almost as if she had the 'pressure' ability that a real Raquaza had.

Jaylon noted that despite that this person was the brains behind this entire operation, Kasmir greeted her informally. _That's right; he said that the Lugia Rider's sister became Raquaza. He knows her from before._

The woman nodded to the rookie. "Jaylon, welcome to my hideout. Do you like it?"

The brown haired trainer could only squeak and nod. He'd never met anyone with this much power before.

"Good. It's nice to meet you in person. Perhaps you will trust me more than before?" she asked again.

"I trusted you from the beginning." He said back.

The blonde woman smiled and nodded. "That's good." She changed the subject, "I'm sorry for what happened to Hiku. We should have been more careful, or maybe I should have taught you more on being safe. I didn't want this to happen to her."

Jaylon couldn't help but feel that she was being friendly, as if she was gaining his trust and friendship. "No one could have seen that coming, Ma'am. But now we know that humans are snatching up trainers."

Raquaza seemed interested now. "Did you see how the men kidnapped Hiku?"

"I didn't see all of it, but I know that they had some kind of cloth they put over her mouth, and then three of them tried to get away, two guys carrying the Pokémon and trainers, and the last to cover their escape." His eyes grew wide again. "Oh great! What will Hiku's family think since we didn't come back from the forest?"

"They've been notified already." Raquaza held up her hand to calm him. "I sent a call to tell them Hiku was safe. They will be transported here to watch over and care for Hiku shortly. They also said that the man they captured shot himself in the head. We no longer have a captured culprit." She paused to let this news sink in, then she went on, "Hiku's family did mention that the man said something about human dominance and that by calling Pokémon friends, we forfeit our human authority. Is this correct?"

Jaylon nodded quickly. "I heard it myself. I don't really know what that means…"

"We now have a better idea on who this mastermind is…" the leader said thoughtfully.

"Yeah, of course!" Jaylon agreed with her.

"Anything else you know about these men?" Raquaza asked.

The brown haired boy scratched his head. "Oh, yeah. Some similar guys tried to mug me in Fallabor town. But my handy Zangoose defended me." He looked down at his Pokémon and patted her head, "She's a good Pokémon."

The Zangoose didn't look all that happy to be babied over.

Raquaza's voice grew the slightest higher in pitch. "So you saw these men before? And you captured a Zangoose in Fallabor?"

He nodded back.

"Can you understand your Zangoose?" she asked quietly.

The brown haired boy's eyebrows rose up. "Yeah, how'd you know?"

Raquaza took on a mysterious look. "Jaylon Wicklow…" she muttered before saying to Kasmir, "Kasmir, go and bring Vekra and 'Latios' back here. You know where Olivine city is, right?"

"Yes, Raquaza!" he saluted with a grin and teleported away.

The lady in a green dress smiled slightly to the rookie. "I will finish your tour. Then at the end, I will introduce you to some people you would really love to meet." She left off mysteriously and began to walk to the unexplored part of the base.

Jaylon followed her without a word. Even though she had been friendly, he still viewed her with high esteem.


	15. Chapter 15, Farewell to Forte

**Thanks for the reviews and favoring, it's a comfort to hear feed back **

**The next chapters are coming a little slower because I'm currently writing chapter 18 and I have to force myself to focus and finish this story. But I'm having fun writing my original and hopefully to-be-published book at this same time.**

**Anyways… Happy Fourth of July, the day America declared independence from England. As a present, I'll upload a chapter **

**Chapter 15**

Vekra looked up from her breakfast at the café and watched the TV again. It was at another soccer game, and some half-drunk men were shouting at the screen for their favorite team to win. And yes, even though it was breakfast, there were drunken people. Vekra didn't doubt that they had been in the bar all night.

She sighed and poked at her omelet. She didn't feel hungry and she had ordered a big meal. She wanted to get out of Olivine city, and Johto overall. Vekra let her hair fall around her shoulders today instead of putting it up. Her choice to join Raquaza and become a high ranking captain was a flop. All she was doing now was waiting. If she had said no to Raquaza, she would have still been traveling with the stupid contest goer and still be in Hoenn. She regretted her brash decision now.

Vekra Ashcroft glanced over at the nearly empty café and watched the other people lazily. Maybe if she waited long enough and smelled the omelet long enough, she could bring herself to eat. She knew that she was becoming homesick, but didn't want to admit it. She had lived in Ever Grande City forever, and her sudden flight had felt like a wonderful freedom, but now she wanted to be back home.

She focused her gaze of a strange person who had just entered the café. He was young looking and had short blonde hair. Vekra didn't get much of a look at his face before he whipped around and addressed the working Phoebe, "Hi, Phoebe, how are you?"

Vekra was surprised that this new person knew her host's name, and she seemed to be caught off guard as well.

"Can I help you?" the tanned woman with short brown hair answered suspiciously.

Vekra caught the uneasiness and her imagination became wild. What if this person, despite his friendly tone and innocence was a trainer snatcher? Hiku was first, maybe she was next. And if she was found out as a trainer, 'Latios' and Phoebe would be caught too! The blonde girl suddenly had the urge to fight this guy off. He could be trouble, and Zuni could take care of that quickly!

"Yeah, do you know where 'Latios' and the rookie are? I forgot where Olivine was, and I ended up in Saffron. Boy, that place is evil! Then I found a map and saw that Olivine was in Johto, so I went here, but it got dark and so I spent the night here… I'm looking for them, Raquaza needs them." The strange boy ranted on in an informal manner.

Vekra still didn't know if he was clean or not, but she didn't want to trust anyone too fast. But he was looking for 'Latios' and her; that was for sure. What if the trainer snatchers already knew the alias of the person that helped her start her Pokémon journey?

Phoebe was thinking along the same lines as Vekra and refused to say anything on the matter. "I'm sorry; I don't know what you are talking about…"

"Come on, Phoebe, I need to get them to Raquaza. Something bad happened and Raquaza needs everyone together." The strange boy pleaded.

The rookie had had enough of hearing this person. Either he was telling the truth, or he was a very tricky person. She rose from her seat and quietly stalked up to him. She took out a Pokéball and held it slightly hidden in her hands. Maybe if she pressed it to his back, it would feel like a gun. She would pull him outside and get the truth from him, and save Phoebe explaining that she was a past trainer.

Phoebe saw what Vekra was doing and gave a slight nod, as if giving her the go ahead.

Vekra clenched the Pokéball that contained her Grovyle and pushed it to the boy's back. The boy responded by tensing up tightly. The rookie smiled and whispered in his ear, "Look, idiot, you're disgracing this café. Come to the back alley and tell me what you really want." She smiled evilly, as if relishing what a cool threat she made without even trying.

He turned slightly and whispered back, "Is that a Pokéball?" his strange purple eyes were small with fear.

Vekra nodded and indicated with her head towards the back door. The boy quickly obeyed and walked to the back door. He opened it and shut it behind him. Phoebe gave a small nod of thanks before going back to her cleaning and order filling.

Vekra went out the back door and found the strange boy sitting on top of a pile of trash. He looked young and more terrified than before. Vekra didn't know what to make out of this guy. She started the conversation, "Ok, what is your business here?" she made herself sound as sinister as possible.

The boy quipped and looked around nervously. "Look, trainer, I don't mean any harm, I'm just looking for some people who I should have found yesterday, but I messed up really bad. I'm Raquaza's trusted Po- erh, trusted errand boy. Do you know where 'Latios' and a rookie trainer are?"

"You are a really bad liar, you know that?" she jeered. "I know that you want to find trainers just to snatch them up!"

"That's not true at all!" the boy regained some courage and countered her accusation, "I'm not trying to kill or kidnap trainers! That's not what I want at all! I want to find 'Latios' and Vekra so Raquaza can give a speech. Besides, I was told they got shot down and had to crash-land here. I can take them to Raquaza's place in a better way."

Vekra didn't understand how a boy like him could be any use. She reasoned that she could tell him her name. After all, he was afraid of her, maybe she could still threaten him if he was a trainer-snatcher. "My name is Vekra. I know where 'Latios' is, but how can I trust you?"

The strange boy's face lit up. He slid down the trash pile and smiled charmingly. "You are? Oh that makes things a lot easier! Just take me to 'Latios' and we can get back to the base!"

The trainer didn't like this answer. "How can you get us to the base quicker? Do you have flying Pokémon, or maybe a Pokémon who can make us invisible?"

The boy opened and closed his mouth. "You want the truth?"

"Nothing but." She nodded back firmly.

He sighed and grinned nervously. "I… am a Pokémon, and I can teleport you back to the base."

Vekra suddenly burst out laughing. Of all the nonsensical things-! She laughed heartily before gasping out, "You are a Pokémon? If you are a Pokémon, then I'm Caleb Krei!"

The boy-image shimmered and the boy turned into a Mewtwo. His purple eyes twinkled and he bowed to her, "Nice to meet you, Prime Minister." He rose from his bow and continued the joke, "Can I get your autograph?"

Vekra entered in Phoebe's apartment and saw 'Latios' sitting in front of the television. She rolled her eyes and announced, "Hey, look what I found wandering the streets."

The newly introduced Pokémon called Kasmir peeked over her shoulder and waved to the inhabitant. "Hey, 'Latios', it's me, Kasmir!"

DJ/'Latios' didn't turn to face either of them. He continued to watch the TV and moaned softly.

Vekra addressed the odd Pokémon/human thing, "He's been like that ever since he saw to bulletin about 'Latias' and the Pokémon translating event."

Kasmir raised his eyebrows and opened his mouth a little, completing the confused look. "What are you talking about? What about 'Latias'? I thought she was snatched and possibly dead…"

The captain heard that comment and he lowered his head to his knees and sobbed loudly.

"Oops, I shouldn't have said that…" the Pokémon corrected himself far too late. He cleared his throat and announced the disheveled captain, "Raquaza needs you back at the hideout as fast as possible. She sent me here to bring you two trainers back."

"Is she going to say anything about Uchiha?" the man quipped in his seat.

Kasmir shrugged and pushed into the room. He turned off the television and faced 'Latios' to get his full attention. "I don't know, but whatever this is about, it's a grave matter that affects us all." His purple eyes took on a softer look and he said in a gentler tone, "I know that loss and betrayal hurts. I've seen more deaths than any normal human or Pokémon should ever see. And I know that Uchiha was dear to you… but sometimes you just have to let the ones you love go…" he glanced to the ground and sighed lightly.

Vekra still couldn't understand this guy/Pokémon. For being a Mewtwo, he seemed to act like a human. And furthermore, even though he was naïve, this thing had gone through a lot, as he had just said. She didn't like that a Pokémon looked like a human and acted like one as well, but if he was on their side, she supposed he was alright. _Maybe he had lost someone he loved as well… _she thought as she watched his movements.

'Latios' sighed and refused to look at the Mewtwo disguised as a human. "You don't know what happened, do you?"

"I will when Raquaza sees that all of her trusted trainers are together. She'll talk about this whole… thing when I take you there." He tried to flash a smile, "Will you come easily, or will I have to drag you?"

The captain of 'Raquaza' stood slowly. "I'll pack, and then we'll be out shortly."

Vekra nodded to herself and she climbed the small stairs leading to her spare bedroom. Once she was packed, she would go and see this crazy person who ordered her around. _Watch out, 'Raquaza' person, because you can't control me forever!_

Jaylon sat in a plastic chair by a window in the headquarters of Raquaza. The window gave him a good view of the entrance of the base; the only known one. Earlier in the day he had seen a woman dressed as a Flygon riding on a Flygon enter the base with Hiku's family. The cool and calculating Weyler, the affectionate Mrs. Turret with her Medicham, and professor-looking Mr. Turret all entered and rushed to Hiku's bedside. They had even brought her a present for when she woke up: Nano. The little Mudkip had been found by Weyler, who had run after the trainers in desperation. Hiku had not awoken yet, and Raquaza and Jaylon were obliged to wait another day for her testimony on the snatching.

Speaking of Raquaza, she had promised yesterday that he would meet some important person he would love to see, but it had turned out that the person or persons in question would not come back until tomorrow.

Jaylon now knew the hideout pretty well. It was quite a big place, full of rooms and labs and meeting rooms. But most impressive were the training rooms. The floors were made of dirt, so as to allow ground-type Pokémon fight without ripping up the expensive floors. He could hardly wait to battle in one of those training rooms. There were several of Raquaza's captains running around, and the rookie could only assume that they had strong Pokémon. The boy only wished he had a full team of six Pokémon now.

"Hey, I'm gonna be takin' off soon." A loud voice from Behind Jaylon startled him from his daydreams. Forte stood behind him with Maku sitting on his shoulders.

"You are? Where are you going?" Jaylon stood up and faced the short-time friend.

The tall, lanky boy with dark skin smiled. "I heard that since Fallabor Town is in ruins, that the contests they were havin' have been moved ta Pacifidlog Town. It's not far away from Slateport. I jus' wanted ta say goodbye to ya."

The younger and shorter rookie nodded and offered his hand. "It was nice meeting you, Forte. Thanks for your help in finding Hiku."

Forte accepted his hand and pumped it hard. "Aw, I didn't do a whole lot. You were a great trainer to tag along with." The little Makuhita on his shoulders seemed to agree with its owner and it cried out, "HITA!"

"Thanks."

Then the tall boy turned around and walked off quickly due to his big legs. Jaylon wondered if he would ever see the contest goer ever again.

Jaylon sighed and took out a Pokéball. He opened it and his Combusken came out in a flash of red. The rookie smiled at his adorable starter. "Hey Hearth, it's been a while since we've battled, huh?"

"Busken!" the yellow chicken Pokémon chirped.

"We are going to have to find a person to challenge to a Pokémon battle, or else we won't get any stronger." The brown haired boy glanced around the deserted area.

"Comb, comb…" Hearth the Combusken agreed. It had been a while, but she still felt sore about losing her match to Vekra's Wingull.

"I wish I could understand you like I could with Rain…" he sighed and sat back down in his chair. His eyes caught some movement outside and he looked again for a better look. There was a Dragonite Pokémon carrying a smaller Dragonite… no, it was an old man in Dragonite cosplay. And with him, a teenaged girl rode on the huge yellow Pokémon. This person had to be a rookie trainer like himself. Maybe he could challenge her to a battle!

Without warning, he sprang from his chair and sprinted for the main entrance door. "Come on, Hearth, we might get a battle in after all!"


	16. Chapter 16, The Meeting

**Happy Fourth of July, the day America declared independence from England. As a present, I'll upload a chapter **

**Chapter 16**

Jaylon ran, with his Combusken following, to the front door and flung it open just as 'Raquaza's Captain 'Dragonite' came to the doors. The rookie trainer (complete with a Groudon shirt) smiled and beckoned them in like an overenthusiastic door greeter.

The old captain and the girl rookie trainer walked in casually. The girl saw the decorations and Raquaza tiled floor and gasped in amazement. She gazed around in fascination. "This is quite the place." She stated.

Jaylon smiled and held out his hand. "Hi, I'm Jaylon, a rookie trainer from Hoenn."

His Combusken chirped happily as well.

The girl turned and shook his hand. "Oh, you must be Hiku's friend. She talks a lot about you. I'm Rin from Sinnoh." She wore a fedora hat to cover her windblown hair, and a casual t-shirt that had a chibi Riolu on it.

"You know Hiku?" he asked.

"Yes, I called her number on the Pokénav thing because I wanted to know someone from Hoenn before coming here. Then I get picked up by 'Dragonite' and taken to Johto. Is Hiku here too?" Rin replied.

Jaylon nodded and looked more serious. "She was almost snatched-"

"That's terrible!" exclaimed Rin.

"And she barely got out alive. She's in the infirmary right now, but she'll recover soon." Jaylon nodded. Hearth the Combusken twittered sadly.

Before the two rookies could continue in their conversation, the intercom went off. The voice of Raquaza echoed through the base, calling, "All trainers and captains, please report to the Hexagon. All trainers and captains, please report to the Hexagon for an emergency meeting."

"That's us," Rumbled the deep-voiced 'Dragonite'. He indicated that they follow him and he walked to the center of the base.

The Hexagon was a hexagonal meeting room that had the slight look of a college classroom. The rows slanted downward to a wide desk and a projector screen at the low point of the room. Some trainers and captains in Pokémon cosplay were already seated.

Jaylon was surprised to see a familiar and slightly loathed face already waiting for the meeting to start; Vekra Ashcroft! A man sat in the seat next to her, but Jaylon had never seen this person before. Jaylon also recognized 'Garchomp' and 'Gible', captains from earlier. Then there was Kasmir of all people standing in the back chatting with a nerdy looking man. Wasn't Kasmir a Pokémon? What was he doing in this meeting?

Other captains in cosplay filed in and waited while chatting softly with each other. There was a total of five captains he saw in cosplay: 'Flygon', 'Kingdra', 'Dragonite', Garchomp', 'Gible', and 'Salamence'. Jaylon didn't know if he should stay with this new rookie from Sinnoh or to saw something to Vekra, or even ask Kasmir what he was doing in the meeting.

Before he could decide what to do, 'Dragonite' forced him to sit in the nearest chair next to Rin. "The meeting will start now." he said and sat down in a chair one away from the rookie.

The old captain was right, the lights dimmed slightly and the figure of Raquaza in a tight green dress made her way to the desk. Jaylon wanted to cheer for her, because he felt she was powerful enough to deserve some praise, but he kept his mouth shut.

The helmeted woman clicked a button on the deck and an image of a newscaster flickered on the projector screen. She gave a heavy sigh and began the introductions. "Hello, my captains and trainers. I called this emergency meeting for a reason you all might know already. But for the sake of the rookies, I will show a news report from yesterday. I recorded it and will pause it to explain the truth that the reporters do not see. Without further ado… watch."

The picture and audio associated with it started up. The news channel was a normal channel which people from Hoenn to Sinnoh would watch. The newscaster, Butch Weathers, was well-known as well. Jaylon watched the report with interest. Somehow, this thing had caused everyone to be all panicked and pessimistic.

Butch Weathers started the new story with a scowl. "And in other news, there has been a terrible uncovering of a group that tortures Pokémon for the sake of minimal technical advances. Thanks to a redeemed cohort, we now have information on what this group did in the past. We now take you to Fallabor town, the source of these crimes."

The screen went to a loop of photos of the wrecked but repairing town of Fallabor. Jaylon shivered as he saw the town he had nearly faced death in. Fallabor town had been a dangerous place due to Zangoose and Seviper attacks. Had it not been for Hearth, he would have been killed by his Zangoose Rain.

"A few years ago, a group of researchers came to this remote and soot-covered town to start experiments on something, but no one knew what exactly. But the repenting cohort has said that the goal of this trip was to perfect Pokémon translating." Butch said, and the report continued with a lesser known reporter on the scene.

"There has been evidence that this claim is true. Fallabor town residents don't deny that there was a group of people operating in the town, though no one knew what they were working on." The news reporter said, and then the screen flicked to an interview with a Fallabor town resident.

"I saw many people working in this building right behind me," an older woman pointed to a shack in the background of the soot-covered town, "But I never knew what was going on. You see, the people weren't all that talkative."

The interview flickered off and the reporter continued, "But now we have a video tape of one of the criminals who was involved in this fiendish plot. Who knew that one of these Zangoose torturers would come out and confess? Maybe this character is coming down the road of recovery."

The image flickered again and a video of a woman with navy blue hair and a serious/sad expression came on.

Before the image of Uchiha could begin in her confession, Raquaza paused the recording. The man sitting next to Vekra let his head sink into his arms and he began to weep.

Raquaza began to explain what was going on in her calm, even voice. "This woman right here, some of you might know her. Her codename was 'Latias'. A while ago, she crossed into the Kanto border, never to be seen again. The only contact we have found from her are these two letters." She lifted up two plain letters.

"One letter was sent to her younger brother. It instructed him to contact me in order to make sure he and his family were safe. 'Gible', as he is now called, joined the ranks of the captains to find out what happened to his sister. The other note was recovered by 'Dragonite', who found 'Latias's Pidgeot flying about in the northern Johto region. The note had a very rough sketching of a man's profile, but we have been unable to identify who this person is. The note says that this man is a prime suspect of being behind the trainer snatchings.

"In regards to the trainer snatchings, we now have a better idea of what is behind them. I want to thank trainer Jaylon, the Turret family, and Kasmir for their intervention. Had they not done so, the rookie trainer Hiku would have been snatched away. Thanks to their quick thinking, they not only saved her, but also gained information on the snatchings. As I suspected, the kidnappings are done by people, not Pokémon. Secondly, the Turret family thinks that the man they apprehended had a Johto or Kanto accent. Regrettably, the captive shot himself. But we have gathered enough information by observation anyways.

"The key to snatchings is surprise. In Hiku's snatching, three men cooperated to catch the victim unawares. Then they drug the victim and carry him or her away. One of the captured men said something along the lines of this before he died; 'We are snatching up trainers because anyone who calls a Pokémon a friend or equal is forfeiting their human dominance.' I want you all to think long and hard about this claim."

The lady in the green dress put the letters back on the table and continued to explain the clip. "'Latias' was snatched, so we assumed she was dead. But it turns out that she lived. I don't think she is in very good condition though. Her eyes have become hollow and dull. She is no longer the captain we knew. I wouldn't doubt that she was tortured terribly before she gave out these secret operations. I wouldn't doubt that the snatchers, since they hold such contempt for weak humans, that they killed off the rest of her Pokémon before getting her to cave."

"BARBARIANS!" Kasmir shouted from the back of the room.

"Calm yourself, Kasmir, that is only a guess." Raquaza corrected the enraged Pokémon.

Jaylon looked back at the blonde haired boy/Pokémon. Was it just him, or did the Mewtwo seem to address Raquaza differently than the other time he was by Raquaza. Before, Kasmir was friendly, now he seemed hostile. _Perhaps it was the context of the conversation._ Jaylon shuddered and remembered that Kasmir was not only a legendary Pokémon, but a super strong one at that. Kasmir had killed the man who had tried to kill Hiku… this Pokémon was not to be underestimated.

Jaylon's belt shuddered and Rain the Zangoose emerged from the Pokéball. The Zangoose simply sat by him and waited, as if waiting for something.

"Rain, get back inside the Pokéball." The rookie whispered to his still rowdy Zangoose.

"Goose Zangoose Zan-Zan-an Goose-oose Zangoose [I heard my hometown and species mentioned, I only want to hear what's going on.]" the female Zangoose replied.

Jaylon didn't argue back, he wanted to know what was going on with this 'Latias' person.

"But now, she appears on camera spilling out the secrets of our early studies. Kasmir, I want you to watch this clip closely. You are more 'tuned' into emotions, mannerisms, and body language. I want you to memorize the background that she is in to see if we can find clues to where she is held. I want to you read her movements and see if you can find any hidden messages from Uchiha. Can you do that, Kasmir?" Raquaza said in her even tone.

The still angry Pokémon nodded.

Jaylon also noted that Raquaza didn't seem to address him the same way he had seen earlier. _What could this mean?_

Raquaza bowed her head and the video continued with Uchiha's confession.

"I am Uchiha, and I was in the operation nicknamed 'Operation Speak'. This group was headed by a mysterious figurehead. We traveled to Fallabor town, Hoenn for the experiments on Pokémon translating. We were working on creating a device that could let humans listen to their Pokémon, and hence create a better breed of trainer that could understand and work with Pokémon flawlessly. We never meant any harm, but we chose to use the Pokémon Zangoose to experiment with."

Rain tensed by Jaylon's side. He agreed that this was frightening news and patted her head slightly. Even though she was a strong-headed Pokémon that didn't like him all that much, Jaylon didn't share the feelings. He wanted the Pokémon to work with and love him like a friend.

Uchiha's testimony continued, "It took a while for the tests to show any hope of working. But after a while, a new type of technology was used on the Zangoose. Successful translation. But there were many catches: there were only one in every Pokémon species projected that the machine could be compatible with, and only a few select people could hear it.

"We gave up on the project after no new advancements were made. I'm telling this to you all because I regret the pain we caused the Zangeese species…" the navy blue haired girl trailed off sadly and the video flickered off.

The news anchors began to discuss that breaking story and began to throw insults around, saying that this figure-head should be unmasked and jailed for the crimes.

'Raquaza' stopped the tape and the lights came back up. She clenched her teeth, as that was the only sign of frustration she could provide under her helmet. "This event that Uchiha mentioned is top secret. Only the people who went on it and I knew of it. Unfortunately, now the whole world knows it, as should you. But you will know the truth."

The lady in green clicked a button and the projector screen grew dark. "I set out creating this organization to preserve Trainers in the noble ways of the old; where humans and human would team up and keep the peace between the two species. I wanted to increase that bond by letting the trainers know what their Pokémon said. By establishing a better level of communication, we could make the trainer the ideal peacekeeper. But this did not fly. The process proved too complicated. Uchiha is right in saying that we used Zangeese as test-subjects. From them we found that Zangeese were one of the few Pokémon species that could work well with the type of communicator implanted in their throats."

By Jaylon's side, Rain suddenly felt at her own throat. Her actions went unnoticed by her trainer.

"What Uchiha didn't mention (and rightly so) was that the humans who could understand the Pokémon had the same blood-type equivalent. With those two limiting factors, our translating machine was born. But it had too many flaws to be made public. I said to the team working on this project that I might try again, but now that is out of the question." Raquaza went on to explain the further implications of what the information could do to the public opinion, but Jaylon didn't listen.

Suddenly, the reality of Rain crashed down on him. He looked at his Pokémon beside him and the Zangoose met his look. They understood now.

"We have the same blood-type?" Jaylon whispered in awe, "And you have one of those translators in you… that's why we can communicate…"

Rain on the other hand did not look happy or in awe. She narrowed her black eyes. "Goose Zangoose Zan-Zan-Zan goose Zangoose, Zangoose Zan goose, goose goose-Zan [I remember being in those cages now, the cruelty, the humans leaning down in my face and asking me questions again and again… I wasn't a pet like the wild Zangeese believed, I was even worse… I was an experiment…]"

"But you got away…" Jaylon muttered.

"Zan ZAN goose Zangoose [I was _sent_ away!]" the female retorted.

"But how rare is it that you and I had the same blood type?" Jaylon still couldn't shake the feeling that the Zangoose was somehow _left_ for him. "I'm B-, how can you have B-? There has to be reason that no other experimented Zangeese got away from that except for you!"

"Goose Zanzanzan goose Zangoose [You think I was meant for you? How stuck-up!]" She retorted as her fur began to stand up in anger.

Rin, sitting beside Jaylon looked over and finally noticed the Zangoose. "Oh, is that a Zangoose? Did it come from this weird experiment?" she looked closely at the trainer's face, "Were just talking with it?"

"This isn't the right time…" Jaylon mumbled to the other rookie. Rain suddenly sprang into action. The white and red Pokémon vaulted through the row and scampered out of the doorway. "Rain, come back!" Jaylon yelled; unaware that Raquaza was still talking. He ran after the Pokémon as quickly as he could.

At the exit, Kasmir decided to come along as well in the chase. The disguised Pokémon suddenly grabbed the rookie's shoulder and stopped his run.

"Jaylon, let me handle this; Pokémon to Pokémon." Kasmir smiled and waited for an answer.

"But she's my Pokémon, and somehow we can understand each other by this weird invention…" Jaylon stopped and realized yet again that Kasmir was an English-speaking Pokémon that sounded and looked like a normal human. Jaylon sighed and pointed after the running Zangoose. "Ok, she's all yours…"


	17. Chapter 17, Getting in the Swing

**Now everyone, the updates will be coming up slower. I am currently writing chapter 18, so that means you've caught up D:**

**Anyways, thanks again for reviews, favorites, and alerts. They make me happy **

**Chapter 17**

The emergency meeting had finished. Vekra didn't know why, but she wanted to see Hiku. If Jaylon had been nearly snatched, she wouldn't have cared, but Hiku was such a nice girl compared to him.

The blonde rookie trainer walked up the slight incline to get to the infirmary. Vekra didn't notice that a different rookie was following her to the same place. Of course, Rin was largely unnoticed and quiet.

Vekra found the room Hiku was being held in and found all of Hiku's close family around her. Vekra felt out of place. What was she doing here? This was Hiku and her family; she probably didn't want to see a girl that she had only met for a short time on a strange island. That time seemed long, long ago.

Hiku was lying on the hospitable bed, arms full of IV's and a breathing mask on. She looked pale due to her hair around her face being so black. The hospitalized girl slowly blinked open her eyes and her family called out her name. Her brother with dyed white hair was the first to speak.

"Hey, sis. You're ok."

Mrs. Turret held up a little Mudkip and said in a hopeful tone, "And we got Nano back from those bad guys… Here honey…" the woman gave the squirming Mudkip over to Hiku.

The black-haired girl smiled as her starter Pokémon chirped and curled up in her arms. She didn't say anything back. Vekra thought it was because she didn't know what to say or she was too weak to say anything. Vekra's heart fell. This snatching business was harsh; if a snatching could turn such a happy, compliant girl into a voiceless and sad being, then Vekra now felt a new fear for this evil.

Mr. Turret, a large man with black hair and a white lab coat, knelt by his daughter and said, "I came as soon as I could, hon. Are you feeling better?"

Hiku blinked and moved her head slightly. She caught sight of Vekra outside the circle and Hiku turned her head to her former team mate.

Vekra felt uncomfortable with all of Hiku's family following Hiku's gaze and finding an unfamiliar girl. They didn't know her, and she didn't know them. "Uh, hey girl." She said quietly to the patient.

The other rookie trainer who had followed Vekra on her way in came to Hiku's bed as well. Rin, the unknown trainer from Sinnoh, knelt down and gave a concerned smile. "You ok, Hiku? I heard from Jaylon that you were snatched. Well, I guess you can't talk much of now, but it's good to see you…"

Vekra hid her disgust. How'd this strange girl know Hiku?

Kasmir glanced around the deserted hallway and let his human guise fall. He didn't know how many people knew he was a Pokémon, but he liked to have others believe that he was human. He wished he was human himself, but that was a totally different thing to be thinking of. Right now he had to calm down an angry Zangoose. He summoned up all his tact and thinking skills (that didn't take long), and floated over to where the Zangoose sat.

Rain sat on her haunches and stared out a small window. She was obviously trying to take this all in (another advantage of being a psychic Pokémon, Kasmir could feel other's emotions). The Mewtwo floated close to the white and red Pokémon and sat down by her.

The Zangoose whipped around and hissed. _Go away!_

Kasmir ignored her hissing and foul language. "I think you should react to news a little better." He said casually.

Rain noticed that the strange human/Pokémon was in fact a legendary Pokémon. She didn't have the strength to fight a fully grown Pokémon of his power. She let her ears back and slowly let her fur fall back down. _Who are you to talk?_ She grumbled.

Speaking in human-speak, Kasmir simply smiled. "It's great to be a human's Pokémon. You get to bond with a human in a strange but wonderful way other Pokémon from the past didn't have. They can teach you to fight in their style or even increase your own skills. I don't think you should be so angry to be a Trainer's Pokémon."

_Then why aren't you one?_ The female Zangoose hissed.

The purple Pokémon let out a small laugh. "I was pretty much raised to be independent and to be camouflaged as a human, I didn't really ever get to feel that bond. But I'm also an Aura guardian, so that adds on to my independence… not to mention that I'm legendary too." The Mewtwo shrugged. "Well, enough of me, how are you?"

_I hate everything, go away._ She hissed back.

Kasmir smiled. "Sure, and you _hated_ those cute little twin Zangeese." He stood up and waved. "Ok, I'll stop lecturing you, but you can talk with me or any other Pokémon here. See you later!"

**The next day**

Jaylon had found Rain, but still had trouble appeasing her. This knew knowledge of her beginnings weren't a great help either. This entire base knew that his Zangoose was from the translating experiment, and maybe even other Pokémon would find out and tease her about it. Rain's response would be to fight and it would all go downhill from there. So to prevent this chain of events, Jaylon kept Rain inside her Pokéball for the most part of the day. But Jaylon was still determined to finally gain his Pokémon's trust.

He sat in a small meeting room with the other rookie trainers; Rin, Vekra, Caprico/'Gible'. Well, technically, Caprico/'Gible' and Vekra were supposed to be training to be captains, but they were still all at the same level. Hiku would have been at the meeting, but she wasn't going to be able to walk anywhere soon.

The four trainers waited uncomfortably, not daring to say anything to each other. Frankly, Jaylon only knew Vekra, and didn't like her. Rin was pleasant, but odd. And Caprico was taking his sister's broadcast like it was his own fault and was withdrawn and moody from it.

The side door opened and three figures walked in. Jaylon sighed as he spotted the ever-present Kasmir. He was ok to be around, but it was so unfair that he was a legendary. It was even odder that he pretended to be a human. Being a Pokémon was way cooler! The other two men Jaylon hadn't seen before. One had short dark-brown hair and box-rimmed glasses. He had the look of a computer nerd. The other man was 'Garchomp', one of Raquaza's captains.

The geek smiled and sat down close to the trainers. "It's a pleasure to meet you trainers. My name is Milo, and I work in the technology area. But I should tell you that a long time ago I was a trainer just like you. My friend 'Garchomp' and I are going to teach you trainees some battling techniques and how to build on your bond between you Pokémon."

"I need that, my Riolu hates me…" Rin muttered.

"My Zangoose too!" Jaylon whispered back.

The man in Pokémon cosplay stepped forward but remained standing. "Ok, my friend and I will show you to the training rooms. We will demonstrate a Pokémon battle and then set up a small tournament for the rest of you to compete in."

Kasmir smiled. "Since Hiku can't be here, I'm going to use her Pokémon to give them some experience. I'll be trainer number five."

"What? You can't be a trainer!" Jaylon jumped up. "You're-"

"-A strange person and shouldn't be controlling other's Pokémon? I asked Hiku before doing this and she agreed!" he cut in quickly.

The rookie frowned and realized that not everyone else knew that this crazy purple-eyed being was a Pokémon himself. Jaylon guessed if Hiku was ok with it and Hiku's Pokémon went along with it, why should he oppose it? It still seemed weird for a Pokémon to pretend to be a trainer and tell other Pokémon what to do.

Milo stood up and smiled to the rookies. "Come with us."

"I don't need help, I can fight well myself." Vekra rolled her eyes and pointedly stared at Agent J, "I can beat anyone in a match."

Milo didn't bulge in his resolve. "I bet all of you have fought a Pokémon battle, but 'Garchomp' and I are older trainers with more experience. I bet you could learn something." He waved his hand and the rookies hesitantly followed him.

The group went across the hall and came to several rooms with dirt floors. It was entirely enclosed with concrete and shatter-proof glass. There was even room in each of the areas for a small bleacher for spectators. Milo pointed to the first one they came up to and ushered them in.

"Sit on the benches, and my friend and I will demonstrate a fight." The nerdy man grinned kindly to his friend. "I haven't battled my Pokémon for a while…"

'Garchomp' grinned back. "Then fear my super-buff Sinnoh team." He threw a Pokéball and a Luxray instantly jumped out to the battlefield.

Milo shrugged and called out his Pokémon, a Lucario. "One-on-one then," he challenged.

Rin suddenly jumped up in her seat. "Oh my GOODNESS! You guys are from Sinnoh? Don't tell me that you are the Lugia Rider's friends! I've heard so much about you!" she gushed.

_Sinnoh people are weird…_ Jaylon thought to himself.

"Yeah…" 'Garchomp' looked a bit annoyed. "Do you know my name then, or was I only his friend without a name?"

Rin frowned to recall her memory. "The other guy is Milo, and you are… Diego?"

The man in Garchomp cosplay smiled. "Yes! I get recognized!" he cleared his throat and looked back to his Luxray. "Ok enough of that; come on Luxray, time to beat up geek-boy."

"Hey!" Milo called back.

"Luxray, go!" Diego commanded his Pokémon. He didn't give any further commands such as attacks; he just let Luxray fight its own way until he could suggest a better plan.

"Jason, show him your stuff!" Milo instructed the Lucario.

The two Pokémon ran toward each other. The Luxray opened its mouth and sparks began to fly from its mouth, fangs glowing slightly. The Lucario wasn't as fit as the other Pokémon, but it still could dodge the thunder-fang attack.

The Lucario jumped into the air and twirled slightly. It opened its mouth and a bluish purple orb formed at its mouth. Jason the Lucario spat the attack out at the Luxray. Luxray was fast and avoided the attack as well. The pulse exploded on the ground, kicking up some dirt in the process.

"Was that attack an aura sphere?" Rin asked Kasmir.

"No, that was a dragon pulse attack. An aura sphere is formed at the hands." The Pokémon answered back.

The fight was just getting started.

"Jason, use return!" Milo called to his Pokémon.

The Lucario nodded back and began to focus the power of a return attack. Jaylon's mouth almost unhinged as he saw the power the Pokémon was summoning. Jaylon had seen the power of Return when Hearth was fighting Vekra's Wingull, but this Return attack was nearly double the power!

"Luxray, don't let him unleash that attack!" Diego called.

"Lux!" the blue and black lion Pokémon roared and charged forward, aiming to attack it. But at the last second, it crouched in front of the other Pokémon and gave a snarling, evil face, an attack known as 'scary face'.

Jason the Lucario became afraid, and the power of return faded slightly, but the Lucario summoned up his courage to attack. The blue bipedal dog Pokémon punched Luxray's face and the power of 'return' shot the lion Pokémon skidding back.

Jaylon didn't recognize these Pokémon. They were certainly Sinnoh Pokémon. He didn't even know what type they were. The Luxray seemed to have electric attacks, but looked slightly like a dark Pokémon. The Lucario was blue, so it could have been water type, but it had a dragon attack. Maybe a Lucario was a strong Dragon Pokémon? No, it didn't look like a dragon…

Rin on the other hand was watching the battle closely and taking notes in her head. The two Pokémon seemed to fight with their own will. The Trainers only called out to stop an attack or to attack, but didn't specifically call out with what. _So, this must be advanced battling. You somehow tell your Pokémon what attack to use without letting the opponent know. If you worked out a communication with body signals or even voice pitch, a trainer can give inside hints to their Pokémon… fascinating…!_

The Luxray wasn't fazed. It jumped to its paws and raced forward. It quickly bit its 'thunder fang' attack into the Lucario's shoulder. Then it reared back and pounced the Lucario to the ground.

"Jason, you got this?" Milo asked as he saw his Pokémon tackled to the ground.

The Pokémon grunted back and fired a 'dragon-pulse' close range. The Luxray yowled with pain and jumped off the other Pokémon.

Rin sighed happily. "I want a Lucario so badly! I have a Riolu, but in order for one to evolve, it needs to love its trainer a lot. Since my Riolu hates me, I don't think he'll ever evolve…" her comment was unnoticed by the other trainers. There was a battle to watch!

Luxray yowled loudly and glowed slightly, and then it roared as a volley of sparks went everywhere. This was a high-powered discharge attack!

Kasmir jumped and did something, but Jaylon couldn't tell what it was. Somehow, the sparks of electricity didn't hit the spectators, but the trainers did get hit. To cover for the strange immunity to the attack, Kasmir smiled nervously, "I guess we have a barrier protecting us. This should be standard for all practice rooms, but I guess it's only in this one. Milo chose the right one…"

Jaylon understood now, but didn't say anything. No matter what his brain told him, Kasmir was a psychic Pokémon. He probably used a Pokémon attack or psychic energy to block the discharge attack.

Milo staggered slightly from the shock. Jason the Lucario stumbled to its knees and panted heavily. The discharge was very strong and he could hardly fight any more. Diego was wounded by the discharge, but not by much. The Pokémon cosplay he was wearing was probably made of some repelling fabric.

The computer nerd held out his Pokéball and said quietly, "Good job, Jason."

The battle was finished; Diego had won the one-on-one match.

Milo smiled to the rookies. "I hope you were able to learn a bit of something from that battle. First off, you don't need to tell your Pokémon specific attacks. And second off, know your limits and abilities." The nerdy man smiled. "OK, who's next?"


	18. Chapter 18, Rematch!

**Yeah, now that you've caught up, there might be a few more misspellings and disjointed sentences. But that's ok, at least I hope. Read about the re-match between Vekra and Jaylon!**

**Chapter 18**

Vekra stood up from the bleachers, a stern look on her face. "I challenged Jaylon to a re-match!" she announced. "Even though I won last time, I'm sure I can win this time without that much trouble." She smirked and flipped her blonde hair over her shoulder.

The brown-haired rookie jumped up and tightened his headband. "Sure, Ms. Cocky, I'll take you on! But I'll show you that I can win this time!" he glared at her. He still couldn't stand her attitude.

Milo shrugged. "Ok, that works." The nerdy-looking man stepped back from the dirt battle field and gestured for the competitors to take their places. Diego/'Garchomp' did the same.

Kasmir jumped up. "Hey, what do you say to the winner of this match facing off with me afterwards?"

"Ok, that'll work." The blonde in fashionable clothes said degradingly. "Be ready to fight against me, it shouldn't take all that long to beat up this bleeding heart."

Jaylon grumbled to himself. "We'll see." He got down from the bleachers and took Milo's spot at one end of the dirt covered training area. He glanced at his stock of Pokémon. "How many Pokémon should we use?"

"Four-on-four!" Vekra proclaimed. "Go ahead and choose your first Pokémon."

Kasmir waved. "Good luck, I'm going to get acquainted with Hiku's Pokémon." He left the training area. The rookies paid him little attention; the other two trainers were much too interested in seeing this rivalry. Rin sat on the edge of the bleachers. Was this how all Hoenn people acted? Caprico was interested in the showdown as well, but didn't show it as much.

Jaylon glared at his former-teammate. "Go, Hearth!" he called. His handy and faithful chicken Pokémon leapt from the Pokéball and scratched at the dirt.

"Combus!" the yellow Pokémon called. Hearth saw Vekra and felt her chicken rage start to boil. She had lost before to this trainer, she wasn't going to let her trainer down again!

Vekra smiled. "Ok, I'll send out my starter just to show you type advantage doesn't always work. Zuni can fight any of his weaknesses." She glared at him haughtily and released the catch of a Pokéball. The said gecko Pokémon emerged on the battle field, ready to… dance?

The Grovyle merrily hopped about, waving its leafy hands in an imitation of a terribly executed waltz. "Gro Vyle Groooooovyle." It sang to itself, happy to be in the fresh air again. Zuni the Grovyle still was quirky.

This act of foolishness caused Vekra to redden in anger. "Zuni, battle position, not that!"

The green Pokémon shrugged and glanced at its opponent. Zuni flinched ever so slightly, but hid its fear of fire type Pokémon well.

Hearth looked delighted to fight the grass starter Pokémon. This time the chicken knew she would win. She spat out a plume of fire for intimidation purposes.

Milo raised his hand and called to the two Hoenn trainers, "Ok, begin!"

"Hearth, ember!"

"Zuni, quick attack!"

The gecko Pokémon attacked first and slammed hard into the chicken Pokémon. Hearth stumbled back, but spat out several flaming embers back. Zuni saw the embers and jumped back with a burst of speed. He dodged the rain of fire barely.

Jaylon didn't know if Hearth would attack on her own will like the experienced trainers and their Pokémon did. He waited for a moment and sighed. This performance wasn't going to be as cool as Milo vs. Diego. "Ok, Hearth, 'return' attack!" he pointed dramatically. If he had to tell what his Pokémon should attack with, he might as well try to look cool while doing it.

"Zuni, double-team!" Vekra announced. The Grovyle obeyed but didn't move any closer to the opponent Pokémon. It glowed slightly and several copies were sent around it, making it look like Zuni had called on other Grovyle to help.

Hearth gathered up the power of return and ran forward, aiming for one of the copies. The fire/fighting Pokémon called furiously and slammed itself against one of the three copies. The attack burst through a copy and Hearth staggered forward to regain her balance, nearly crashing into Vekra in the process.

"Zuni, leaf-blade!" Vekra called to her Pokémon. She smiled slightly as Zuni's new attack had such a good effect. However, the double team attack was rendered useless by Zuni's leafblade. The copy of Zuni and the real Grovyle jumped forward to hit the chicken while it was down, but only one hit. Zuni was now identified from its clone.

"Get the real one, Hearth!" Jaylon yelled and nearly ran from the designated spot for trainers to stand. "Ember high power!"

The chicken also saw which Grovyle was the real one. She stumbled to her chicken feet and spat flaming embers at the real Zuni. When the Grovyle was hit, the other copy disappeared , leaving only one Grovyle left. The embers scorched Zuni's skin, and the Pokémon cried out piteously.

Without acknowledgement from its trainer, Zuni retreated to the safety of the Pokéball. Vekra cried out and glared at the Pokéball. "Come on, Zuni, you can withstand a simple ember attack! You can't give up on me, we have to win!"

The gecko Pokémon refused to re-emerge.

Jaylon jumped up with joy. "Good job, girl!"

Milo raised his hand once more and declared round one had been won by Jaylon.

Vekra looked completely irate. She tried to hide her reddening face from the two spectators. She didn't come all this way to become a captain of Raquaza's to be trounced by the stupid kid who called himself an agent! She glared icy daggers at the boy and called out her next Pokémon. "Ok, Trapinch, let's crunch his Pokémon into dust!"

Jaylon recalled Hearth with a smile. This time he wouldn't underestimate Trapinch's bite. Dooma the Ninjask was lucky to have survived it. No, this time he would call out a Pokémon with a better mouth. "Oan, go!"

Vekra held back a laugh. "You seriously still have that useless blob? Gulpins are terrible Pokémon."

Jaylon frowned back at her. "But just look at Oan: with his cute little puckered lips, closed eyes, and tiny little hands. He's kind of like a Skitty without a tail or legs."

"Sure, whatever…" she didn't look impressed.

"Oan, stay away from that Trapinch and launch sludge at it." Jaylon commanded with another flourish. He knew that Trapinch was a risky opponent to fight, but if he could attack it from far away, then he could hope to defeat it. Unluckily, poison was weak against ground-type moves.

"Trapinch, don't let long-range fool you, dig!" Vekra called with equal force.

The orange, big-headed Pokémon began to tunnel under the ground, but not before a few sludge splats hit it. soon the ant Pokémon was under the ground, tunneling to attack under the opponent.

"Oan, try to avoid the dig attack!" Jaylon called to his little green blob Pokémon.

The stomach Pokémon obeyed and began to zigzag slowly around the field as if to confuse the underground opponent. This tactic didn't work, due to the Gulpin's lack of speed.

Trapinch burst out of the ground under Oan and bit down hard. Jaylon gave a little gasp of horror. "Oan!"

The green Pokémon wriggled in the Trapinch's jaws helplessly. "GULLLLLLL!" it cried, and then it seemed to get an idea and began to sink further down to ant Pokémon's throat.

This was the last thing the Trapinch expected. It gasped and choked on the Pokémon blocking its airway. It savagely beat its own head against the ground to dislodge the other Pokémon. It opened its maw wide and began to cough.

Vekra and Jaylon were both surprised by these actions.

The boy shrugged. "I didn't teach him that…" he admitted.

The Trapinch began to flop on the ground, trying with everything it could think of to dislodge the Gulpin. Oan didn't look like he wanted to be anywhere else in the world. He sat inside the Trapinch's mouth, looking almost happy.

The Trapinch was turning blue from lack of air. It was really quite the sight to see a blue Trapinch. Vekra glared. She knew that this was another of Jaylon's tactics, she had to call back her Pokémon or it would suffocate. How dirty and typical.

She held out the Pokéball and called the ant Pokémon back, saving it from the annoying little blob in its throat. The orange Pokémon disappeared to the Pokéball and Oan fell to the ground, no longer allowed to clog a throat. Oan almost looked sad.

"Why are you sad?" Jaylon bent down and petted the poison Pokémon.

Rin stood up and waved abut a book. "I know why! I read in the Pokémon handbook Hoenn edition that Gulpins spent their childhood in the mouths of Swallot when traveling. For a Gulpin, it feels at home to be in another Pokémon's mouth."

"I… I didn't know that…" Jaylon admitted. _Maybe if I actually looked up facts about my Pokémon on the Pokédex I might learn a bit more…_ He patted the little blubbery Pokémon again and called it back into its ball. He smiled to himself; this battle was going on a lot better than his first fight! The first two he had won! The worst thing that could happen now was a tie!

Vekra understood this too and was getting even crosser. She called out her next Pokémon with a cry of frustration. She sent out her Beldum and commanded, "Take down!"

Jaylon fumbled for a Pokémon to send out before he was hit by the floating leg Pokémon. Milo, as the ref, did nothing to stop it.

"Go Dooma!" he cried and the bug flew out of the red energy. The serious bug darted about quickly, trying to draw the other Pokémon's attention away from the trainer.

Jaylon knew that having Dooma against a Beldum was stupid, but he had called her out, so he could only hope his bug could fight against a steel-type Pokémon without cracking an exoskeleton again.

The Beldum followed the bug through the air and crashed against the wall. The bug was very fast and hard to hit, especially with only one eye to aim with.

Jaylon grimaced. Any attack Dooma did would be far too weak to hurt the steel Pokémon. If only Dooma knew an attack like 'bug buzz', then it would be an easier fight. "Dooma, use 'leech life' attack!"

The Ninjask obeyed and sent out a small stinger from its mouth. The stinger bounced off the hard skin of the Beldum: the attack failed.

"Take Down!" Vekra grimaced. If only it could learn a better attack…

The Beldum chased around the bug once more only to miss and create another impact in the wall. The Beldum glared slightly, as if fed up with its uselessness as well. Dooma the Ninjask was happy to dodge around and gain speed with every minute.

"Take it down, Beldum!" Vekra called.

The Beldum glared with its one eye and charged faster than before at the bug. The Beldum hit Dooma, but received damage as well. Dooma was fine; her exoskeleton was still in good shape.

Then something happened that would change the tide of the battle; the leg Pokémon began to glow. Its form twisted and shaped into a creature bigger than before. It sprouted another leg and a circular body in between. The glowing ceased and a Metang hovered in the place of the Beldum.

Jaylon's Pokédex beeped, but he didn't listen to it. This was a much more impressive Pokémon now. Maybe he should call back Dooma… No, he wanted to see how strong this Metang was.

Vekra pulled out her Pokédex and smiled. She had custom ordered this Pokémon, and now it was finally showing its worth. She grinned at the new list of attacks: Confusion, Bullet Punch, Glare, and Take Down. Now Jaylon would be running for the hills from this Pokémon.

"Metang, use Confusion to hold it in place, then use bullet punch!" she called, confidence ringing in her voice. Her Pokémon felt her trust and acted swiftly. Its red eyes glowed and Jaylon's Ninjask was held by its power. Then the metal Pokémon hovered closer and rapidly punched the helpless bug.

As much as Dooma had a tough exoskeleton, she was no use against a combo move. The Ninjask fell to the ground. Jaylon gulped and returned his Pokémon. This Metang was going to be tough to beat. But thankfully this was four-on-four, not an elimination battle.

The brown haired boy sighed and looked at his Pokéball. "One day you will win in a fight, I promise Dooma." He picked his last Pokéball from his trainer's belt. "Ok, Rain, I hope you'll fight for me; I've got to have you fight Vekra's Wingull."

Jaylon sent out his last Pokémon. The cat-ferret Pokémon looked irate to be in a battle. She fluffed up her fur and glared at her trainer. "Zan-Zan-Zan goose, goose Zangoose goose Zan Zangoose goose-oose Zan-Zangoose [You think I'll just fight for you even after I find out that you've joined the group that experimented on me? Go to hell!]"

Vekra seemed to get her confidence back. She returned her Pokémon and called out her Wingull. The little gull Pokémon looked uneasy as well. Maybe it was because it feared its trainer or its opponent.

Jaylon reddened slightly at her curses. "Come on, Rain, can't you let go of the past? You are a very strong Pokémon and I want you to grow stronger…"

The red and white Pokémon snubbed him and sat down, refusing to fight.

It was known throughout the whole base that Jaylon could understand his Pokémon. No one was surprised to hear the conversation. Milo on the sidelines grimaced and glanced back and forth from the two trainers. If this Pokémon was obstinate, then it could be disqualified. Then how could there be a winner announced? The computer nerd sighed and let it go on. Maybe Jaylon could convince his Pokémon to fight.

Vekra laughed haughtily, which was a common thing to do when she saw the Zangoose snubbing Jaylon's orders. "You still can't make the Pokémon obey, can you?"

"Come on, Rain! Show them your stuff!" Kasmir, who had come back in from meeting with Hiku's Pokémon, waved and jumped up and down. "Show off that new move we worked on!" he called happily.

Jaylon didn't know of this training.

Rain eyed the strange human/Pokémon lazily. She pointed her nose to the ceiling and trotted to the center of the training ring. "Goose-oose Zan-an Zangoose [Fine, I'll make this fight fast.]" she said airily.

"What attack is this?" Jaylon turned around and asked the Pokémon.

"You'll see!" the Pokémon disguised as a human smiled from the stands.

Vekra's Wingull flapped its huge wings and began to hover in the training room. Vekra called for it to spray a water gun, and it quickly obeyed.

Rain almost looked pleased. She allowed herself to be hit, but only to summon up a strange power. She hissed and stood to her hind legs, an electric attack forming at her red forepaws. The lightning found the water and quickly traveled up it to shock the attacker.

The Wingull cried out and stopped its water gun and flapped furiously to avoid the thunder bolt attack, but it was hit despite its efforts. The shock was crippling and the bird went down with one hit.

Vekra was stunned. Since when did Zangeese know electric attacks? She slowly returned her Pokémon. She had lost… somehow the match-ups had not gone in her favor and Vekra lost.

Jaylon was as stunned as his opponent. "Rain? When did you learn that?"

"Zangoose goose Zan [that weird Pokémon taught me.]" she mewed back and resumed her four-legged pose, fur smoothed down. "Goose-goose Zangoose Zan, Zan goose Zangoose [But just because I fought this time doesn't mean I'll listen to you, got it?]"

Milo raised his hand, "Jaylon is the winner. Good job you too!" he smiled to the pair of them. "Now, I believe that Rin and Caprico should…"

"What about the victory match?" Kasmir yelled. "I want to face Jaylon in combat!" he made a pouty face that fit his young look, but didn't match his age (30).

Milo sighed. "Kasmir, you can fight Jaylon after this next fight. That will give Jaylon's Pokémon some time to rest. And then you can battle whoever wins this fight as well. Does that work out?"

The blonde boy/Pokémon sighed. 'Fine, I'll get Jaylon to the medic, then after Rin vs. Caprico I'll fight." He smiled again. "It'll be fun! I haven't really battled with a Pokémon since my partner Scyther, and that was ages ago!"

**Slight joke intended there in the last line. Kasmir, when he was still young, had to pretend to be a human in Aura Guardian times because no one knew what kind of species he was. Anyways, the Aura Guardians had to practice aura with a Pokémon, an ancient style that became Pokémon training. Kasmir was supposed to train Scyther, but since he was a Pokémon, the two merely play together. Scyther died in Aura Guardian times, which is to say about two thousand years ago. Since then, Kasmir hasn't really had a Pokémon that he had to act superior to since.**

**Yeah… just wanted to let you know the intended joke. Since only **_**I**_** know about him, only I can really laugh… I do that a lot…**


	19. Chapter 19, Rin vs Caprico

**Thank you for your patience. Now I will present another fight, featuring the not-so-well-known characters of Rin (me in the Pokémon world) and Caprico (Uchiha/'Latias' brother). By the way, check out Snivy the Warrior by Dienodude.**

**Chapter 19**

Jaylon left his Pokémon to be tended to and sat down to watch the next fight. He didn't know much about the trainers or even Johto and Sinnoh Pokémon himself; maybe he could learn a few things by watching.

Caprico, dressed in normal clothes in contrast to his 'Gible' cosplay, held out two Pokéballs. "I have four Pokémon. How many do you have?"

Rin looked slightly embarrassed. "Well, I have three Pokémon, but one of them refuses to fight, so it's more like two."

Caprico nodded solemnly. "Then send out you two and I'll send out my two. Double battle, no substitutions." The boy said with very little emotion. Jaylon still couldn't get over that this kid was young, but so grim. Weren't kids supposed to be full of energy and happiness? His cousins Anna and Mike were…

Rin agreed and sent out her two Pokémon. One was an orange Pokémon with an inflatable tube around its neck and blue fins at its arms. The other was black with a red feather as the left ear. The Pokédex registered them as a Buizel and a Sneasel respectively. _Interesting how the names seem to fit…_ the Hoenn trainer thought to himself.

Caprico in turn called out his two Zangeese twins. The almost identical young ferret Pokémon romped around a little before turning and seeing opponents for them to battle.

Rin smiled, "Aw, those little Zangeese are so cute! I've read about the Zangoose species a lot and they are really strong…" she stopped herself from rambling on about the facts she learned. "Ok, Taynee the Sneasel and Lee the Buizel, ready for a double battle?"

The two Pokémon looked ready, thought this might have been Rin's first double battle.

Milo, the geek-man, flourished his arm and called, "Begin!"

Caprico was far more used to commanding two Pokémon at once. In fact, he insisted on training the two twins Pokémon together. "Pieces, 'double kick' on the Sneasel; Gemini, use 'slash' on the Buizel." The blue haired boy commanded shallowly.

The two Zangeese galloped forward. Rin couldn't tell which Zangoose was going to attack Sneasel or Buizel. "Ok, um… Taynee use 'icy wind'! Oh, and Lee use 'water gun'…" she commanded hesitantly.

The Sneasel and Buizel looked slightly confused to which Pokémon to aim their attack to. Taynee the Sneasel shrugged and blew out a cold wind on both of the advancing Pokémon. The attack made the opponent Zangeese shiver, but not much more.

One of the Zangeese leapt forward and brought its razor sharp claws at Lee's head. The Buizel blasted out a water gun just in time to save himself from a wound.

The other Zangoose (by default Pieces) hissed and performed a sliding kick to the Sneasel. The dark/ice Pokémon had a double weakness to fighting attacks. The two kicks landed squarely in the female Sneasel's chest and sent her flying back to her trainer.

"Snea…sel…" the Pokémon grumbled and stood back up weakly.

Pieces snickered back. "Zangoose goose Zan-Zan."

Caprico smiled slightly. "Fine, I'll allow you to try to fight with your other Pokémon. Your Sneasel won't be able to fight much longer."

"Baton pass, Taynee." Rin instructed, furrowing her brow.

The Sneasel happily returned itself to the safety of the Pokéball. Rin smiled and tucked her blonde hair behind her ear. "If my Pokémon fights, you'll be facing a tough, fighting type Pokémon." She threw out a normal Pokéball and a Riolu emerged.

This Riolu was certainly a strange one. It had small red eyes where a normal Riolu would have huge adorable eyes. Its aura felt cold and it crossed its blue arms over the other in a show of superiority. It eyed the twin Zangeese with disgust, as if it thought itself higher rank than anyone else. This was Frost, Rin's Riolu.

Caprico looked surprised and looked unhappy. If this Pokémon did fight, then his normal-types would be in a world of hurt. "Pieces, 'sword dance'. Gemini, 'dark pulse' on Buizel."

Rin countered, "Lee, use 'aqua jet' on the Zangoose that attacked you. Frost, please use force palm or something…"

The male Buizel happily jumped forward, surrounded by water, and slammed into the Zangoose named Gemini, or was it? The Zangoose that was hit scampered back a little and held out its claws, showing a slight glowing. It was using swords dance to raise its attack. But the Zangoose called Pieces was supposed to do that attack… Rin was so confused.

The Riolu however only stood and watched the opponent Pokémon distastefully.

Milo began to notice the Riolu and frowned slightly, as if to call up a memory.

Gemini hissed and sent out a pulse of dark power at the Buizel. The water-type Pokémon was hit and fell back from the power.

Rin pleaded with her stubborn Riolu again. "Please, Frost. Do something…"

Jaylon watched the Riolu completely snub her. Although Rain wasn't _that_ bad for him in Pokémon fights, this Riolu was a piece of work. The brown haired boy sighed. Rin sure needs some help with that one. _I wonder why it's so stubborn._

Caprico glared at his opponent Pokémon. _The Riolu is the one I have to worry about._ He thought. "Pieces, Gemini, both use 'slash' attack on the Riolu; take it down!"

The two twin Pokémon twirled their tails and ran at the blue and black dog, claws glowing in preparation for a strong slash attack.

Rin only commanded her Buizel, "Lee, use quick attack. Try to protect Frost."

The Buizel looked slightly uncomfortable at the thought of helping such a rude Pokémon. It ran forward with amazing speed and managed to trip both charging Zangeese.

Even though the Zangeese duo was foiled slightly by the quick attack, they didn't stop their 'slash' attack. But instead, Gemini turned on the Buizel and scored a deep cut across the Buizel's face. Lee leaned back and held his bleeding wound. Pieces charged on towards the Riolu. Her slash was more powerful due to her 'swords dance'.

The Riolu opened his eyes casually and regarded the Zangoose with distaste. At the last moment, it jumped up, flipped in the air, and landed away from the Zangoose. Pieces swiped, but was only able to slice the air where the Riolu had been.

Frost the Riolu glared but did nothing to attack.

Jaylon didn't know what to think of the fight and who would win. If the Riolu didn't fight, then Rin would lose badly.

Milo stopped watching the battle in general and was staring incredulously at the angry Riolu.

Rin was feeling hopeless now. "Lee, you ok? Can you still use water gun?" she didn't try to direct the Riolu, it was never going to listen. The Buizel wasn't fazed by his wound. He was a brave Pokémon who ended up fainting before giving up. Rin's Sneasel however was not so hardy, and that was why it retreated quickly before.

The orange water-type Pokémon sprayed a gush of water at the nearest Zangoose. The targeted Zangoose received the hit and snarled. It tried to fluff out its fur in anger, but its pelt was far too soaked to perform such a sign.

"Get out and fight, Riolu!" Milo urged on the Pokémon.

Diego/'Garchomp' went up to his friend and said harshly, "Milo, you're the referee, you can't vote for a side!" he frowned and looked his friend in the eyes.

"Once the fight is over, I think I need to talk to Rin…" Milo said quietly. He had a weird look in his eyes that held more than he was letting on.

Frost glared at the ref for calling to him. How dare a human think he could order him around? Frost was caught off-guard and Pieces raked her claws down his side.

Furious, the Riolu spat at the white and red Pokémon. "Rio Riolu!" he cursed. Without warning, he formed a strange energy at his paws and sent out a wave of sorts at the female Zangoose.

The strange attack hit Pieces hard in the face. She fell back and whimpered from the force of a fighting type move. It was a rare attack called 'vacuum wave'. Gemini scampered over to his sister and mewled to see if she was ok.

Frost wasn't done yet.

(Pokémon perspective)

Frost snickered cruelly. _Seriously, you think your team work can beat out type advantage?_ He felt like pounding the twins into the dirt, but yet he didn't want to fight because that was what his stupid trainer wanted. He walked closer to the whimpering Pieces and the concerned Gemini.

Lee the Buizel looked completely gung-ho. He wiped the blood from his wound and taunted, _give up, ya can't beat me! _He acted like he had caused the damage. Of course, he didn't want to be shown up by the Riolu, the haughty thing. _Come on, I've got an attack waiting ta knock ya out!_

Gemini sniffed at his sister_. Come on, Pieces, you can fight this guy. We can take him on together. And if he launches another attack, I'll take it. You can't give up! _He pleaded and shook his pelt free of water.

Pieces stood back to her four paws and whimpered. _Brother, let's get him!_ She snarled fiercely and lunged at the Riolu, ignoring her trainer's orders to attack with 'double kick' on the Buizel. She wanted to 'slash' that Riolu!

Gemini agreed with his sister and they quickly ran in for another attack on the Riolu. Lee the Buizel was ignored, which irked him.

Frost glared and waited for the two Zangeese to come closer. He had much more battle experience than Rin's other Pokémon. He had been through tough times, he could handle this. The blue and black dog Pokémon countered one slash attack with another 'vacuum wave' attack, and the other Zangoose (Pieces) received a 'sky uppercut' before she could use her attack effectively.

Gemini staggered back, wincing from the vacuum wave attack to the face. He blinked his eyes open through the pain and saw his sister barely conscious, lying on the ground. The male twin gasped and nudged her head slightly. _Come on, sis. You can keep fighting. How am I supposed to fight without you?_

The fighting type Pokémon stood back, finished with fighting for the moment. _Pathetic, really!_

Lee was getting angry from not being included in the fight, but wasn't indecent enough to attack Gemini when his guard was down.

Pieces whimpered and fainted despite her brother's urgings. She was returned in the red flash of the Pokéball.

Gemini was nervous. How was he supposed to fight without his sister? He backed away from the two Sinnoh Pokémon. _Pieces? Pieces?_ He called, twitching his tail back and forth. His trainer, Caprico, didn't seem to like his actions. The trainer called for the male Zangoose to attack, but Gemini had yet to find the courage.

Frost was fed up with the stupid match. _Shut up and return yourself then! Seriously, are all Pokémon stupid?_ The haughty Riolu huffed.

Lee was sitting down and doodling in the dirt, completely unaware of the fight. If he wasn't needed, he didn't need to pay attention. He spat out a bit of water and began to make mud pies out of boredom.

Gemini glanced back to his trainer for help. The blue haired boy replied to his look, "That Riolu hurt your sister, don't you want to do something about it?"

The white and red Pokémon nodded and glared at the two Pokémon. It would be hard, but now Gemini would fight twice as hard for his sister! He urged himself to walk closer to the dangerous Riolu and snarled. He heard the command from his trainer and happily obeyed.

"Flame thrower!"

_Right!_ He took a deep breath and exhaled just as deep. He had been born with the move flamethrower, as well as dark pulse and embargo. This was the reason Caprico was becoming such a strong trainer; because even though he only had four Pokémon, his Pokémon were specialized. Gemini was proud to be part of it.

A stream of red fire flew out of Gemini's mouth and scorched the Riolu. Frost was bewildered at the attack. Gemini was starting to feel the hatred burn inside him. He galloped forward and launched in the air. He landed on the Riolu and started swiping at his face with his sharp claws.

_What the…? Hey!_ Frost cried as he found himself getting beaten up.

Lee was starting to create a mud pie castle.

Gemini felt anger burning him up. He launched another flamethrower point black at the blue Pokémon before any fighting attacks could connect with him.

Frost found himself scorched, burned, and on the verge of fainting. But how could that happen? A Zangoose was weak against fighting type attacks, how could Frost possibly lose? But yet, he found it hard to get up. One; he had very little HP, and two; Gemini was sitting on his stomach. _You b-_ he choked out a curse before fainting.

Gemini leapt off of the Riolu and slashed at the Buizel sitting in the dirt. The white and red Pokémon bowled the water Pokémon over and quickly gave a blow to the head; knocking out the Buizel as well. The mud castle was stomped flat.

The two opponents Pokémon were returned into their Pokéballs and Gemini was left panting and trying to understand that strange concept of rage he had felt. He had won… He had won for his sister…


	20. Chapter 20, Kasmir vs Jaylon

**Hey, Chapter 20 is up! I should thank Dienodude for helping me and giving me a fantastic idea for the future of these characters. It'll be a while until I coordinate his suggestion in, but I wanted to give credit where needed.**

**Anyways, enjoy the last of the battle chapters for now. I might set up a double battle tournament soon though **

**Chapter 20**

"Ok, that was unexpected…" Jaylon said over the shocked silence. He glanced at Vekra to see her reaction to seeing one Zangoose knocking out two Pokémon so fast. Maybe now she would respect the power of a Zangoose!

"No kidding…" Kasmir added. He shrugged and instructed, "Ok, Milo geek-boy, call the match and let me challenge Jaylon!" the purple eyed wannabe human winked. "Your Pokémon are healed, here they are right now."

The Hoenn trainer turned and saw the medic holding out a tray with four Pokéballs in it. Jaylon smiled and accepted his Pokémon back, but he still felt weird trying to fight a Pokémon that wanted to be recognized as a trainer. Kasmir was a Mewtwo, however that was possible, and he could probably tell the Pokémon what to do with his psychic powers.

Milo called the match as Caprico as the winner. Rin shrugged and shook hands with the blue haired boy. The two trainers then sat back on the bleachers and gave their Pokémon to be healed by the medic.

Kasmir pretty much skipped out onto the field and called out Hiku's three Pokémon; Akama the Kirlia, Nano the Mudkip, and Tamaki the Shroomish. He patted each one of them on the head and instructed them to wait outside of the battle area. He was planning to not use the Pokéballs, and Jaylon guessed that was normal.

Kasmir waved to the rookie like a best friend would. "Come on, let's battle! If you fight hard enough, we can surprise Hiku with a Breloom!"

"A what?" Jaylon glanced around. What was the Pokémon talking about now?

Rin gave her Pokéballs to the medic nearby and explained, "He means that the Shroomish will evolve soon."

"Oh, then you should just say that." The brown haired boy sighed.

Kasmir shrugged. "Ok, Nano wants to fight first. Call out one of your Pokémon and we can battle. Three on three, ok?" at this, the little Mudkip waddled forward and spat out a little water gun to show off.

Jaylon looked at his team. One Pokémon would have to sit out… but which one would it be? Dooma had not been fighting very well due to the past Trapinch bite in Mauville. But Rain was more obstinate than ever… he took out Oan's Pokéball and called out the cute little blob. Jaylon figured that he'd decide later who wouldn't fight.

The Gulpin wasn't the best choice. He caught sight of the Kirlia on the side lines and started to drool and blush. "Pin, pin-pin gulp!" Oan wiggled its feather on top of its head in glee. He had finally seen what a Kirlia looked like, and it was cuter than a Ralts for sure!

Jaylon didn't know what to make of this behavior. "Uh, Oan, what's up?" he asked. "It's just a fight with Nano…"

Kasmir, being a psychic Pokémon, caught on quicker. He glanced over at the Kirlia waiting delicately on the sidelines. The human disguised Pokémon smiled hesitantly and held up Akama's Pokéball. "Sorry, girl, I'm afraid that Oan is a bit distracted by you. I'll let you back out after the fight, ok?" the green haired Pokémon nodded and returned gracefully in the flash of red light.

Jaylon expected this, but most everyone else didn't. Rin stood up in the stands and called, "How'd you understand what was going on? Can you understand Pokémon too?"

Caprico seemed surprised but didn't verbalize. Vekra seemed bored, which indicated that she probably already knew what Kasmir was already.

Kasmir jumped and admitted quickly, "Yeah, I'm an aura guardian, remember? I can sense auras and thoughts through it…" he smiled widely to hide his nervousness.

Nano chirped and jumped up and down. Evidently he had waited a long time for a good battle and he was ready to fight.

Oan lost his puppy look and made a battle face, which looked quite like his normal, placid face. If Jaylon could understand his Gulpin, he would have heard sad mumblings about fleeting beauty from the little blob.

Kasmir took up a trainer look, serious and calculating compared to his usual carefree and cheerful appearance. He nodded to Nano, "Ok, little guy, show me your power!"

Jaylon didn't think about that kind of encouragement before, maybe he would use it some other time… The Hoenn trainer directed his little blob Pokémon, "Ok, Oan, use 'sludge' attack!"

Nano jumped up and down and quickly spot a stream of water at the stomach Pokémon. Oan opened his huge mouth and accidentally swallowed the water attack. Oan gulped down the water and seemed to forget the sludge to spit out.

Jaylon frowned. He could be a terrific trainer if he could beat a psychic Pokémon directing Pokémon in a trainer battle. Kasmir could probably hear the thoughts and give orders through psychic powers. To beat this guy would be worthy of becoming 'Raquaza's captain! "Ok, Oan, use sludge again. You've got better defense and you might poison him. Time is on your side." Jaylon knew little Oan well enough to say that. The Gulpin was bad at being fast and attack, but defense and HP were his forte.

"Nano, 'tail whip'." Kasmir said in a strange, calculating way.

The little Mudkip wagged its tail cutely and chirped at the same time. Oan (and Jaylon) couldn't help admitting that that was extremely endearing.

The green Gulpin's defenses were lowered, but it wasn't going to just sit around. He opened his expanding mouth and shot a ball of purple fluid. The fluid landed on Nano, but didn't poison him.

The Mudkip chirped and sprayed himself off with water. "Kip-kip mud Mudkip…" he called and shook himself dry.

"Nano, tackle," the purple eyed 'trainer' instructed. He looked completely enthralled to be in a Pokémon battle.

"Oan, swallow him." Jaylon commanded as the little Mudkip ran forward to slam itself against the opponent.

"Avoid it!" Kasmir called out again.

Nano altered his charge slightly, and instead of running into the mouth of the Gulpin, he curved around and hit the opponent from the side, rolling Oan over to his back. Nano continued to attack without orders. He them sprayed the Gulpin down with a water gun.

Oan flailed with his stubby arms to aright himself. "Pinnnn!" he called as the water gun hit him.

Jaylon grimaced. A battle hadn't happened thus far to make Oan flipped over. Was it impossible for a Gulpin to right itself, like a Shuckle or Turtwig that fell on its shell? "Oan!" he tried to think of what to say to get the Pokémon back up.

Kasmir seemed to know something that Jaylon didn't. He watched the battle carefully, scanning everything with his purple eyes. "Nano, let the Gulpin right itself." He said chivalrously. The Mudkip obeyed and trotted off a ways to allow space. The Mudkip was taking orders quite well from a person that wasn't its trainer.

Jaylon wondered if he was allowed to go on the field and turn his Pokémon the right way again. He took a step forward but hesitated. Wasn't it against the rules to enter in the field of a Pokémon fight? Then again, if he hadn't broken that rule, Rain would've removed Vekra's Beldum's eye. He hesitated again, and saw that he didn't need to help Oan anymore. For some odd reason, the upside-down Gulpin was starting to glow brightly white.

Kasmir smiled at Jaylon. "He just needed a little motivation. Now the fight gets more interesting." He said with a knowing smile.

Jaylon understood now, Oan was evolving! _I didn't think Oan needed to be stuck upside-down to evolve, but I guess it works for him now_. He watched as his Gulpin become the third of his Pokémon to evolve. The little blob grew bigger and bigger until the whiteness stopped. There was a comical Swallot on its head now.

Oan the Swallot now had a rounded head and a better distinction between the head and body. The large purple Pokémon flopped over and wobbled to its… errh… bottom. It still didn't have feet.

"Swall…" Oan called out and found that its voice was deeper. It had two yellow spaghetti-looking mustaches and diamonds patterns around its middle.

"Good job, Oan!" Jaylon praised. "Now you can totally get this little Mudkip! Sludge attack now!"

"Tail whip again." Kasmir called to the Mudkip.

Oan attacked first. He scooted closer and spat out a large ball of fluid at the little blue Pokémon.

Nano didn't expect the Swallot to move first and he was pounded by the sludge attack. Once again, he wasn't poisoned, but he was running low on stamina. The blue starter Pokémon jumped forward and gave a cry; 'growl' attack instead of tail whip.

Kasmir wasn't fazed at the incorrect attack.

Jaylon honestly didn't know what attacks Oan knew besides 'yawn'. The rookie pulled out the Pokédex and brought up Oan's data. The brown haired boy smiled. "Ok, Oan, use body slam! That should end this."

The Swallot moved surprisingly fast and launched itself into the air. It completely covered the other Pokémon with its body slam attack. It got off the Mudkip and stared at the mud fish. Nano had fainted.

Kasmir nodded and stepped forward to scoop up the little starter. "The match is over. Good job little guy." He praised the slowly waking Pokémon.

Jaylon jumped for joy. He had beaten Kasmir in the first match! Not to mention, Oan was a Swallot! "Great job, Oan!" he praised the only male Pokémon he owned. The trainer ran out and hugged the large purple Pokémon.

The two boys nodded and returned the Pokémon.

"Round 2?" the Pokémon asked.

"I'm ready." The other replied.

Kasmir called out Akama the Kirlia and patted her head. "Ok, girl, you're up next." He winked at Jaylon and said with a slight cockiness, "I should warn you, I work a lot better with psychic type Pokémon."

"I figured." Jaylon replied. _Psychic is weak against dark, ghost, and bug types. I have one of those. _"Then if you work well with them, I'll use type advantage to even it out." He challenged back with a flash of red to display his Ninjask.

"Fair." The Mewtwo responded. "Akama, confusion."

The Kirlia seemed determined and confident. Maybe it had to do with being with a Mewtwo. The ballerina Pokémon's eyes glowed red and the confusion power pushed at Dooma.

The Ninjask didn't receive too much damage, but seemed disoriented. It began to fly around quickly, but in an erratic pattern. "Dooma, use fury cutter." At this command, the bug zipped closer to the Kirlia in an attack, but it slashed wildly and ended up hurting itself by flying into the ground.

"What?" the trainer asked.

"She's confused." Kasmir said curtly. He was smiling in a challenging way at Jaylon. "I'm not holding back now." he announced. "Akama, use 'confusion' once more. Use double-team as well, that'll keep it confused."

"Dooma, snap out of it. Use a slash attack." Jaylon pleaded.

The Ninjask darted around and hit the wall. Dooma began to slash at the wall, thinking it was her opponent.

The Kirlia used the confusion power and again and used double team, creating two more copy Kirlias. It was the same trick Vekra had used in Jaylon's earlier battle, and the combination of a confused Pokémon and multiple foes wasn't good for the rookie.

Jaylon face palmed. This was going to be a tough battle to win. "Come on Dooma, you can snap out of confusion." He waved his hands to gain his Pokémon's attention. The Ninjask didn't stop from creating long gashes in the wall.

"Let's stop playing, Akama," Kasmir chuckled. "'Magical leaf' paired with 'confusion'."

The real Kirlia nodded and sent out a tirade of glowing leaves. This attack wouldn't do very much normally, but combined with a confusion attack, the leaves changed course and hit every possible weak spot the Ninjask could have in its exoskeleton. The bug Pokémon received that hit and fell to the ground.

Jaylon grimaced and returned his Pokémon. "I'm telling you Dooma, one day you will win a fight…" he said softly. Not even type advantage could be used when his Pokémon was confused. Now it was down to the last Pokémon. Jaylon knew which Pokémon to use. _No holding back, Kasmir…_

The purple eyed Mewtwo patted the Kirlia on the head again. "Good job, Akama." He praised. "I'm going to let you watch the next round."

The Kirlia blushed slightly and hugged Kasmir's leg before sitting on the sidelines. The serious Shroomish waddled up to the fighting area before Kasmir could call him. Tamaki the Shroomish was ready to fight.

Jaylon called out his final Pokémon. The chicken Pokémon jumped out and twittered as it saw the opponent. Fire against grass was going to be a piece of cake. "Ok Hearth, 'ember' now!" the brown haired boy directed.

Kasmir countered, "Come on, Tamaki, you can do better."

The embers from the Combusken blazed towards the mushroom Pokémon. Tamaki didn't change expression as it began to hop and vigorously dodge the fiery projectiles. It came out of the ember attack unhurt. Then in response, the stout Pokémon sent out a cloud of spores at the Combusken.

The spores were easily avoided by the fast Combusken. Hearth jumped in the air and trilled before blasting another 'ember' attack. Tamaki was hit, but received minimal damage due to scuttling dodges.

The Shroomish frowned even harder. It seemed to know what to do next before Kasmir called out its next attack. "Grass knot."

The moment the Combusken landed back on the ground, a horde of plant roots wrapped around her feet, trapping her chicken feet to the ground.

"Hurry, Hearth, burn the bonds." Jaylon called. Any plot from Kasmir was dangerous and needed to be stopped. The visual of the Mewtwo killing the man who tried to kill Hiku was creeping to his current thoughts.

The Combusken kicked at the roots and sent out a few embers on them. While the chicken wasn't looking, the mushroom Pokémon had sneaked up and was releasing spores at a closer range. The spores hit and Hearth felt unable to move. The spores were stun spores.

"Good, Tamaki." Kasmir encouraged. "'Leech seed' to regain some HP."

The Shroomish was already sending out the seeds on the paralyzed Pokémon. The first round of seeds was burned by Hearth's ember, but the second round hit due to the paralysis hindering the Combusken's movements. Hearth cried out as the seeds sprouted and began to leech away health from her.

Tamaki the Shroomish smiled a little and began to glow. Kasmir beamed as the mushroom Pokémon was growing to its next stage; Breloom.

The glowing stopped to reveal a bipedal Pokémon with a mushroom cap for a head, short arms under a collar of white, and two strong legs, completed by a long white tail. Tamaki almost looked cute now.

Hearth saw the evolution take place and suddenly lashed out. She cut through the grass knot and burned the leech seed. She then lunged at the Breloom, holding out her claws for attack. The Breloom saw the claws and blocked it with his own claws. But Hearth then used double kick to send Tamaki staggering back for balance.

"Hearth, ember!" Jaylon cried, excitement mounting in his voice. Hearth was such a good Pokémon; she'd be able to beat this Pokémon with her will. The embers would knock out the Breloom easy.

"Tamaki, counter." Kasmir said calmly. If he wasn't in his human disguise, his tail would have twitched with amusement.

The Breloom held up its small arms and waited for the embers to hit. Hearth unleashed a flurry of embers that scorched at Tamaki's sensitive skin. The Breloom flinched and tried to hold up against the fire attack.

Once the fire tirade subsided, the Breloom glared up at Hearth. At first he stumbled, but then he regained his footing and charged at his opponent. He extended his arms (which were much longer than they appeared) and repeatedly struck with a vengeance. Every wound he had gained was returned double on the Combusken.

Hearth couldn't take the beating; she sank to her knees and fell to the dirt.

Jaylon thought he had the fight, but the new counter move Tamaki learned worked well. Kasmir had won the match. The rookie sighed and returned his Combusken. "You did very well, girl…" he said to the Pokéball. "Well, I guess you won, huh?" Jaylon asked Kasmir.

The Mewtwo was patting the Breloom and holding it up slightly. Tamaki had sustained bad wounds from the fight and was barely standing on his own. Kasmir smiled to the rookie. "Thanks for the match; it's been a while since I did that."

Milo called the winner and then walked over to Jaylon. The nerdy man smiled and said, "Why don't you have your Pokémon healed up? I think the surprise guests are here to see you now." Milo said encouragingly.

Jaylon had almost forgotten about that. 'Raquaza' had told him that he was going to meet someone special soon, but that hadn't happened yet. "Oh, yeah." He nodded. "Just show me that way." He paused and added, "Do you know who this person is?"

Milo smiled. "Let's just say they mean very much to you."


	21. Chapter 21, Family

**Chapter 21**

Milo glanced at Rin and called to her as well. "Rin, why don't you join Jaylon and me? I think I need to ask you a few questions about your Riolu." The nerdy looking man said kindly. He couldn't shake the feeling that Frost the Riolu could be familiar…

Rin nodded and sprinted quickly to the two boys.

Jaylon smiled and shrugged. "I guess I lost to Kasmir and you lost to Caprico. I guess we can't always win, huh?"

Rin nodded. "Yeah, Frost would have pwned those Zangeese if he listened to me, but he's hated me ever since I found him."

Milo started to ask something, but was cut off by the rookie.

"Pwned? What the heck is that word?"

"Oh, its Sinnoh slang for owned, or dominated. It pretty much means that Frost could have won if he listened." Rin explained.

Milo directed the two rookies to follow him down the hall ways of Raquaza's base. They younger trainers continued to talk casually.

"Yeah, that Riolu is one piece of work. My Zangoose Rain just is annoyed at me. Your Frost loathes you or something." Jaylon remarked. "How'd that happen? Most Pokémon aren't like that."

Rin shrugged and tucked her blonde hair behind her ear again. "He hasn't ever been happy since we found him in Hearthome. He was a stray hiding in my Dad's work basement. He knew that I loved Riolus and we had picked up stray Pokémon before, so Dad took Frost home. He's just… hard to understand. I kind of wish I could talk to him like you can with your Zangoose."

Jaylon paused and admitted, "Yeah, I guess being able to understand her has helped a bit. She can tell me what she's feeling and why… If you understood Frost that might make things a little better."

Milo was very interested in this topic. He stopped walking and turned around, holding out a Pokéball. "Rin, you found that Riolu in Sinnoh, in a basement? Did it…?" he fumbled with his words, searching for the right ones to express his hunch.

"Yeah…?" the short-haired blonde girl nodded back.

Milo sighed and pulled out another Pokéball. "It's just that my Lucario pair lost a Riolu… he was kidnapped. My Lucarios searched all of Sunnyshore for him."

"Do you think…?" she asked, eyes widening.

"Jason and Jania would recognize their own pup. Let's try." The nerdy looking man nodded seriously. He clicked open the two Pokéballs and the two inhabitants emerged. They were both Lucarios, one was injured (Jason) and the other looked slightly more feminine. The female had slightly lighter blue fur compared to her mate.

The two Lucarios saw and snuggled close to each other, wagging their tails. They saw the two humans and tilted their heads to the side, curious to know what the rookies wanted. It wasn't every day that they saw humans that weren't Milo or his wife Myra.

Rin stared a second longer at the beautiful jackal Pokémon, then realized that she needed to send out Frost. Could it be possible that her Riolu was actually Milo's –the Lugia Rider's friend-? She opened her Pokéball and Frost emerged. He closed his eyes and stuck his nose up in the air. He was grumpy normally, but now he was irked that he had been defeated by a Zangoose half his age.

Milo's Lucarios released their grip on each other and gazed at the Riolu in curiosity. They didn't make a sound out loud, but were somehow communicating through aura. The female Lucario walked forward to the little Riolu and made a small guttural sound.

Frost opened his eyes slowly, as if he expected everyone else to wait on him. Once he caught sight of the female Lucario, he jumped slightly and opened his eyes wide. "Rio Riolu lu-lu rio?" he asked tentatively.

Jason walked forward too and raised the strange attachments on the back of his head in a sign of reading aura. He lowered the ears-things again and said something like a grunt to his mate. Jania nodded and walked closer to Frost.

Jaylon didn't know what they were saying, but it looked a lot like Frost was in fact their pup. The rookie smiled. "I guess frost found his parents… I'd like to have that happen to me."

Rin raised her eyebrow as if to ask, but her attention was drawn back to the scene of fighting-type Pokémon finally finding each other again. It still seemed impossible for Frost to have belonged to Milo, but then again… Rin didn't know what to think. If the Lucarios could identify Frost's aura, then there was no doubt.

Frost seemed to have even bigger doubts. He saw Jania coming closer to give him affection, but he backed up. "LU! Rio, rio… RIOLU!" he shouted defensively. He held out his paw and a vacuum wave attack formed, threatening to collide with the nearest Pokémon.

The female Lucario called Jania looked sad. Jason however stepped forward and held out his paw as well and formed an identical vacuum wave attack.

Rin's eyes widened. "So that's where Frost learned Vacuum wave, he learned it from his dad. I've heard about moves passing down from the father Pokémon in Pokémon breeding. Vacuum wave is such a rare move, I don't think Frost can doubt it now…"

Jaylon didn't know anything about Pokémon breeding science, so he just let the comment in one ear and out the other.

Frost was getting frantic to disprove the Lucarios logic. "RIO!" he shouted and stopped his 'vacuum wave' attack. "Lu rio lu-lu Riolu rio! Rio-rio Riolu lu!" he glared at them.

Jania knelt down and grunted something. Her red eyes took on a sad look and her ear/hair things rose up again to indicate aura use. She was communicating with telepathy, a talent that fighting-type Pokémon were not usually gifted with. Lucarios were the exception to this rule.

Frost backed up and bumped into Rin's legs. He looked scared and angry.

"What's going on?" Jaylon asked.

Milo shook his head. "Oh, right. Jason and Jania don't know you, so you can't hear their telepathy. Anyways, it goes along the lines of this; Frost doesn't believe that my Lucarios are his parents, but they are certain he's theirs. Jania is now explaining her side of the story." Milo adjusted his glasses and said sadly, "It seems that Frost was kidnapped when he was a young pup. He was taken to a lab and tortured, then left for dead. Frost doesn't think that his parents could have let that happen to him."

"What?" Rin asked and held her hand to her chin. Her Pokémon was tortured in the past?

"Yeah, I'm not sure why yet, but it couldn't have been good." Milo nodded gravely. He glanced at Jaylon and pointed to a room with the number 150 on it. "Jaylon, the people who want to see you are in that room. Go on ahead; Rin and I will straighten this all up."

The brown haired boy nodded and strolled over to the door. He glanced back to the Riolu and Lucario pair. He smiled sadly and entered in the room.

Inside the small room was a pair of computers and a table in the middle, holding up various electronic devices and scalpels. Two people in lab coats were inside, inspecting something in the microscope. The female scientist glanced up from the research and gasped. She had red rimmed glasses and long brown hair tied up into a bun. She called the attention of the male scientist to look at Jaylon.

The male scientist turned from his work on the nanotechnology and gave Jaylon a weird look. He had brown hair as well, and it was in the style of a comb-over with sideburns down his jaw line. He didn't have glasses covering his hazel eyes. The male scientist walked toward Jaylon and asked, "Now, who might you be?"

Jaylon glanced between the two people. They looked familiar… "I'm Jaylon Wicklow from Mauville city in Hoenn." He paused and asked back, "And you two are…?"

The female scientist's eyes grew wide. She replied in a breathless tone, "I'm Judy, and this is my husband, Hector Wicklow…"

Jaylon smiled and held out a hand in greeting before catching on the same surname. But how was that…? Jaylon had a weird feeling of de-ja-vu, hadn't Frost just gone through this? The rookie trainer gasped for words but found none. Judy and Hector WICKLOW… his parents…!

Judy ran forward and hugged his head to her chest. She was on the verge of tears. "Oh Jaylon! I'm so sorry for leaving you with Aunt and Uncle Quincy and not saying where we were going! We had to go undercover; Raquaza requested we work with Milo Bertram for the translating and other technologies…"

Jaylon could hardly believe it! His mom was hugging him; his own mom who he hadn't seen for years and years! Contrary to how the Riolu acted, Jaylon hugged his mom back. "I finally found you… I guess legendary Pokémon are good luck…" he said and hugged his mom even tighter.

"Legendary Pokémon? What are you talking about?" Judy Wicklow laughed slightly.

Jaylon broke form her hug and explained excitedly, "I thought you guys were kidnapped or something, so I thought that if I got the help of a Legendary Pokémon, I could find you again. So then I meet a legendary, but I don't capture him. Then a few days later I find you guys!" even though his hunt for his parents was over now, he still had a fascination for legendary Pokémon. That wasn't going to change.

Hector Wicklow stepped forward and hugged his son with a proud look on his face. "So, did you go to Fallabor town? We worked on the translating experiment there. It was controversial, but Judy and I thought about you and freed a Zangoose for you. You both knew you wanted to be a Pokémon trainer."

Jaylon's voice raised an octave in surprise. "You…? You knew my blood type and let Rain go free into the wild? You knew that she could communicate with me?"

Hector nodded. "You and I have the same blood type, so I made sure I could understand her before letting her go. So I can only assume that you found her." The brown haired scientist smiled. "My, you sure have grown, my boy."

Jaylon hugged both of his parents and thought happily_, thanks, Kasmir. Your legendary-ness brought me to my parents._

"Now," Judy said, wiping a tear from her eye, "we have to hear all about you and your Pokémon adventure so far. Tell us everything!"


	22. Chapter 22, Captains and Traitors

**After all this time, I finally realized that I've been spelling Raquaza wrong… there's supposed to be a 'y' in there, making it Rayquaza. But I'm not going to change it, 'cause I'm far too lazy to change every single word into the correct way. Just keep that in mind that I'm spelling the name wrong. -_-**

**Chapter 22**

While Jaylon and Rin were off with Milo, Vekra had a different sort of event to go through. Diego/'Garchomp' called Caprico and Vekra to his side. "Now, you two are in training to become 'Raquaza's captains, right?" After receiving a nod, he continued, "Well, I just got word from 'Raquaza' herself that there is a secret meeting for the captains. It has the upmost secrecy, got it?"

Vekra nodded again and smiled slightly. Even though she had just been humiliated by her former teammate Jaylon in the Pokémon match, she still was going to be higher ranking than him. It gave her a small pleasure to be on top.

"Can I come?" Kasmir asked the man in Garchomp cosplay. The Mewtwo stroked the injured Breloom as he said this.

"Captains only, Kasmir," Diego used a sinister voice to scare him.

The Mewtwo wasn't fazed but backed off. "Fine, go and have your secret cappy-tan meeting. I'll see to Hiku's Pokémon." He used a laughably fake accent at the word 'cappy-tan'.

Vekra didn't like that he was a Pokémon and yet battled like a trainer. Some law of nature had been defiled in Vekra's mind. No matter how human or smart this Mewtwo was, it was still wrong of him to act different from a regular Pokémon. But she gave the Mewtwo no more thought; now she wanted to know about this secret captain's meeting.

Diego in Garchomp uniform lead them down the opposite way Milo had taken the other two rookies. The group of three walked down the hallways and came to a few flights of stairs before entering one of the many rooms in the building. Vekra had yet to get used to this huge place.

Caprico seemed detached from emotions, which was normal. Vekra didn't like this kid any more than she liked Kasmir. This kid had blue hair and was the quietest, stillest, and least energetic kid she had ever seen.

Vekra followed after Diego into the small meeting room. It looked the same as the room she had been in before going to the training arena. In there, the captains of 'Raquaza' were all present. Vekra only recognized 'Latios' out of the group. There was an old man sitting by 'Latios', but he wore no cosplay to identify who he was.

Another captain that caught Vekra's attention was a red haired woman with a Flygon-like helmet. She wore no other cosplay identification, but wore a V-neck fashion top with frills and tight capris. The reason she caught Vekra's attention was not only the helmet with long green tendrils, but that she was the only other female in the captain's ranks. Vekra guessed that this 'Flygon' person was around her thirties. She was also stroking a Virgoroth, a familiar Hoenn Pokémon. Vekra suddenly felt homesick for the hot volcanic region of the Pokémon world.

The rest of the captains, all mainly in normal attire, chatted with each other quietly. They didn't look up or welcome in the new and young captains.

Diego looked out of place in his full Pokémon cosplay and hastily removed it to reveal a normal graphic tee and blue jeans underneath.

Caprico and Vekra remained standing, uncomfortable with all the new people. Their uncomfortableness was interrupted by the arrival of 'Raquaza'. The blonde haired woman walked in the meeting room and sat in the midst of them instead of facing them all like an esteemed leader. Vekra was astounded at this action.

The blonde woman still had the Raquaza helmet on, obscuring her face, and her tight green dress, but even though she was the only one in full cosplay, her body posture spelled out that she was acting casual. She waved for the two young captains to sit. "Come and seat yourself; you are included in this conversation." She smiled kindly.

Vekra quickly obeyed and sat down. Even though Vekra wanted to show up Raquaza for all of her orders and letters and controlling calls, 'Raquaza' was intimidating to look at. Somehow, there was something about her that commanded attention and cooperation.

Once all the captains were seated and quiet, Raquaza started the meeting. "I'm sorry to disturb you, but I have had rising concerns about the past events. I feel that I can only tell my captains this…" She left off strangely and continued, "I cannot seem to understand the nature of Hiku's snatching. According to Jaylon and Hiku's family's statements, she was in her backyard when she was sneak-attacked and snatched.

"What bugs me is that she wasn't being an outright trainer, and it had been a while since she had been training. She was just minding her own business…"

"Please get to the point." An unfamiliar man said in a gruff voice.

Raquaza moved her head in his direction, but her helmet hid if she was looking at him or not. "I suspect that there is a traitor in this building."

The captains became stunned and not one spoke until Diego mustered up the courage. "Uh, 'Raquaza', why do you think that? We have rookies, trainers, and all sorts of Pokémon trainer supporters here. What makes you connect Hiku's snatching with treason?"

The lady in green replied simply, "Hiku was a new trainer I asked to go on a Hoenn quest to discover the truth about Pokémon training for herself. She and her teammates were tests to see if there was still hope in the new generation." At this, the woman smiled to Vekra, "And I think it went well."

'Raquaza' continued, "But I was afraid for them as well. I gave you captains the identities of the rookies and you said you'd give help or advise when they needed. However, it concerns me that the snatchers knew Hiku's face and that she was a Pokémon trainer."

The same man from before ('Salamence') stood to his feet, anger flaring. "You think one of us ratted out on these snatcher guys?" Vekra observed his hot temper and made note.

The other captains glanced around at each other worriedly. What if the traitor was in this very room? The full grown and broken-in captains ignored the newbies; they obviously wouldn't be traitors, they didn't know enough.

'Raquaza' continued in a solemn voice, intoning her suspicions. "I'm not sure who, but someone definitely knows about my plans and is telling this unknown enemy. After all, not everyone knew that Hiku was a trainer. Not to mention that 'Latias' was probably betrayed as well. She was captured shortly after arriving in Vermilion in Kanto."

This ticked off 'Latios'. The man with light stubble stood to his feet and shouted, "If anyone here ratted on Uchiha, I'll kill the bastard!"

"Language!" Raquaza glared at the enraged man. "I understand your frustrations, but Caprico shouldn't be hearing such profanities."

'Latios' only glared around the group of gathered people, daring anyone of them to avoid his gaze.

The oldest man ('Dragonite') put his large, weathered hands on 'Latios's shoulders and pushed him back to his seat. "Come now, grandson, show some self-control." He lectured. Vekra liked this Dragonite captain; he seemed level-headed and kindly.

The lady in green gazed slowly around the group of eight captains. "I trust all of you; I want that to be clear. I want you to ask questions to other trainers that stay here and see if you can find something. When you do, I ask that you see me in private. Do not share your findings with anyone else." She paused and added as an afterthought, "As much as I trust Kasmir, don't tell him either. He can't keep secrets."

The man that was codename 'Salamence' mumbled something rude about Kasmir under his breath.

Raquaza pretended to not hear 'Salamence'. "This is the main topic of the meeting. Keep your eyes open for suspicious behavior. Betrayal hurts, but if we can find this crook soon, we will fare much better in the future." She sat back slightly and started a different topic. "Now, I believe that Hiku's near snatching has given us a few clues to who this foe we face is. I want you all to brainstorm with me to determine the best answer…

"Jaylon says that the man in the black suit that was involved with snatching said something odd before he died. This man said something about forfeiting human dominance by calling Pokémon friends… To our knowledge, no Pokémon attacks have been launched malevolently against our trainers. My guess is that this foe abstains from Pokémon. Do you all agree?"

The two members that had not spoken yet ('Flygon' and 'Kingdra') remained silent. 'Salamence' sat back, his temper cooling slightly. 'Latios' seemed not to listen. 'Dragonite' nodded quietly to himself. Diego/'Garchomp' shrugged; at a loss for any explanation from such few words.

Caprico glanced at Vekra and whispered, "What do you think?"

The blonde girl shrugged back. "The only encounter I had with danger was when 'Latios' and I were being fired on. I don't know if they use Pokémon or not." It was strange, But Jaylon had more encounters with this strange force that was kidnapping people. But she wouldn't ask him for more details; that would be stooping down to his level!

Caprico nodded and looked back at the adults. Vekra copied him.

Raquaza glanced around. "Anyone have other thoughts? Any idea who could be heading this?"

Diego voiced his thoughts. "I don't know of any one person that is outwardly against Pokémon. The general public in Kanto and in Johto is steadily cultivating a hate for Pokémon though. What with all the attacks and deaths… Do you suspect someone in Kanto or Johto?"

"I suspect someone in high power in Kanto or Johto." Raquaza answered gravely.

'Salamence' rolled his eyes at the conversation. "Come on, you don't suspect someone like a president or vice pres., do you?"

"Perhaps not that high in power, but certainly high enough to lower trainer levels and cause danger for civilians." The leader answered.

Vekra didn't know what to think of this. She barely knew anything about this group that captured and maybe even killed Pokémon trainers. How was she going to help with the conversation? Furthermore, she didn't even think that the numbers of trainers against Pokémon were significant. There would always be more Pokémon than humans, so why were Pokémon suddenly attacking in swarms? Surely the lack of trainers couldn't be the only thing.

'Raquaza' waited for someone else to add a thought or two, but the group of captains held their tongues. The leader shrugged and concluded the meeting. "Very well," she said as she stood, "just keep in mind the danger of the traitor. Ask around and keep your observations free of pre-judgment." She nodded and left the room by the main door.

Vekra stood up. The meeting was over, so why stick around? If she was lucky, she could find some other trainer to practice her Pokémon with. She had to try out he Metang's power! The blonde rookie walked out the door and nearly ran into Raquaza.

The lady in green smiled kindly. "Oh, I almost forgot… You need a Pokémon codename. I was thinking of 'Altaria' at first, but I was looking up Unova Pokémon and found that I quite liked the name 'Dieno'. Which would you prefer?"

Vekra shrugged. She knew about Altarias, but didn't like them all that much. Sure they were dragon Pokémon, but they didn't have a fearsome look or good type advantages. She knew nothing of a Dieno, but she figured it could be better than the fluffy bird Pokémon. "Dieno sounds ok." She shrugged.

"Very well, I shall get a tailor to get your measurements for your cosplay." 'Raquaza' seemed much too friendly.

"Ok, fine. Once I get the outfit, can I go on missions like the police?" Vekra asked hastily before the woman could leave. Vekra wanted to get going on her training.

Raquaza hesitated. "We will see… ever since Uchiha told the press about our translation failure, we've been turned into black sheep. I'll see if I can get something set up for you, 'Dieno'." She said the last sentence more cheerfully. Without any more conversation the lady in green walked off in her tight dress.

'_Dieno'… it would take a while for that codename to stick,_ Vekra thought.

**Vekra's new codename will be 'Dieno' in honor of Dienodude. Thanks, dude **


	23. Chapter 23, Raquaza's Errands

**Here's Chapter 23, which happens to be my favorite number As a reward, I shall show a few pairings in this chapter. Ooh, relationships!**

**And yes, I did change the rating to 'T' due to Latios saying offensive things and violence in the future.**

**Chapter 23**

It was evening of the first full day that all of Raquaza's trainers were in base. Raquaza sighed and stared out the window facing Mt. Silver. She was in her private quarters, waiting until she felt sleepy enough to retire. She wasn't wearing her cosplay; she was tired of wearing it. The dress was so uncomfortably tight and unyielding. Instead she wore jeans and a loose shirt.

The younger 'Raquaza' sighed discontentedly. She missed Sinnoh, the place of her birth. She missed a lot of things of the past, mainly her brother. Corinne/'Raquaza' walked back into the interior of the room and sat down on the bed.

The other 'Raquaza' was sitting on the bed as well. The older lady gave Corinne a strange stare. "I don't know how long this organization can last."

"What?" Corinne's eyes widened in surprise, "You can't mean that you're giving up!"

The other woman kept an even stare. "I can't believe that we can hold out this political revolution…" she looked away from Corinne and said, "We should start taking precautions just in case something goes wrong. Do you know Byron and Riley very well?"

Corinne couldn't believe her ears. "I do know them, but come on, Hianna!" her eyes widened and she quickly apologized for losing control of her tongue. The other Raquaza hated being called by her name.

Hianna gave Corinne a stern glare. "You are still young and you think you are invincible. I was champion of the Elite Four in Kanto before Green (**Japanese version name**) took my place. I know more about Kanto, and our organization is in danger. I want to take a few precautions; that doesn't mean that we need to act on them, but I want them in place." The older blonde woman looked at her sternly. "Do you understand?"

Corinne nodded respectfully. Hianna was older and had made this organization of Trainers possible with her cool logic. "Ok, I understand. I'll act as Raquaza tomorrow all day and you can run errands-"

"I need _you_ to do the errands. I need Kasmir to teleport several places and he trusts you more." The older 'Raquaza' said firmly and coolly.

Corinne opened her mouth to protest, but shrugged in agreement. "Ok, but what am I supposed to do?"

Hianna was already prepared with a notecard with a list on it. "You'll start tomorrow morning. Get some sleep." She said and rose off the bed.

Corinne/'Raquaza' looked over the list and frowned. _This list was odd indeed. Why did Hianna want to do these things? _She shrugged and set the note in her small Pokéball shaped purse. She went to get on her night clothes and get ready for sleep. Hianna Raquaza retreated to her separate bed to get a good sleep too.

The next morning found Corinne groggy. She woke up late and was in a slightly foul mood. The sun shone far too brightly to her sleepy eyes. The blonde woman grumbled and quickly got ready for the day.

She saw a note left on the dresser from the other Raquaza: Hianna. The note read_: Raquaza, be sure to take care of the tasks in listed order. Try to stay unseen and do not dress as Raquaza, as I am already acting as Raquaza. You will be going to Sinnoh as yourself._

Corinne sighed and got ready for the day. An hour later, she was wearing a green top, an army-style green jacket, and blue jeans dyed light from use. She tied up her hair in a ponytail and set out to find the Mewtwo.

She stopped and remembered that she wasn't to be seen. She went back into her room and called out the Charmeleon she owned. It was female and it was one of the Pokémon in the base that had the translation device in its throat. Unfortunately, only Hianna could hear the Charmeleon.

Corinne addressed her Pokémon kindly, "Hey Charmeleon. Could you find Kasmir for me and bring him here? Tell him we are taking a trip together."

"Char! Char-char meleon Charmeleon." The female dragon-like Pokémon growled back happily. Nowadays she was rarely let out of the Pokéball, so this task was refreshing for her. The fire-tailed Pokémon turned and walked out of the door.

Corinne sighed and sat on the bed in her quarters. She pulled out the list from her small purse and looked over it again. "It looks like Iron Island is our first stop. That's good, I miss Sinnoh. But what's with all this other stuff?" She raised her eyebrows in confusion. _What is Hianna planning and how in the world can this help us?_

Kasmir teleported into her room, interrupting her thoughts. The boy-looking being smiled widely, "Are we really going on a trip together, Cor- erhm… Raquaza?"

Corinne stood and saw that her Charmeleon had been teleported with him. She recalled the helpful fire-type Pokémon to her Pokéball and nodded to the excited Mewtwo. "Yeah, we've got a few things to do and it involves teleporting around to places."

Kasmir pumped his fist in the air happily. "Yeah! It sounds fun!" he winked his purple eyes and asked, "Where are we going to first?"

Corinne tried to ignore the fact that his enthusiasm was attractive. "Iron Island." It was odd that Kasmir didn't ask why they were going to random places, he just seemed happy to spend time with her… Corinne shook that thought away from her head as well.

"Ok," Kasmir took her hand and gathered energy to teleport. The sensation of teleporting was uncomfortable with the air compressing all around her. The trip was quick, and in a second, they stood on the rocky excuse for an island.

Corinne glanced around the island. She missed this place. She can come here often during her Pokémon journey long ago. It was a nice escape and a perfect area to train her Pokémon team. She had spent a long time there just to make sure that she would be able to beat her rival May the next time they had a Pokémon battle.

Kasmir smiled and slowly released her hand from his. He glanced around the rocky area along with her. His curiosity finally got the better of him and he asked, "Uh, so what do we need to do here?"

Corinne snapped out her attention lapse and said with finality, "We need to find Byron and Riley. They supposedly own this rocky heap." She added, "I can't tell you the details, or else everyone back at base will know."

Kasmir seemed offended. "What? Me?"

Corinne became slightly playful and slightly angry. "Come on, half of the trainers employed by me have already guessed that there are two Raquaza's by your reaction differences. You know which of us is acting as Raquaza and you still view us as two different people, thus others have caught on." She was tempted to smack him on the head softly.

The purple eyed Mewtwo pouted. "But I don't want to treat you like Hianna and Hianna like you. You are two different people and should be treated as such."

Corinne gave into temptation and smacked his head lightly at this. "Not when Hianna and I are supposed to be one person!" She let her voice rise. Sometimes Kasmir was a tad annoying.

The Mewtwo in human guise laughed slightly. "Yeah, whatever…"

"Now, can you use you psychic powers and find Riley and Byron?" Corinne asked in a still peeved tone.

"Oh, I see." The Mewtwo smiled and closed his eyes, channeling his enormous store of psychic power, or perhaps the learned aura guardian power. Being a Mewtwo made him frighteningly strong. His purple eyes opened and he pointed to the cave entrance. "We are in luck; Byron and Riley are together in Iron Isle. Come on." He started skipping up the rocky slope.

"Darn your hovering powers…" Corinne muttered quietly as she began to climb up the crumbly incline.

Kasmir turned and watched her slower progress. "I can carry you if you want." He said ambiguously.

Corinne blushed and tried to act offended. "No, I can manage!" The last thing she wanted was to let any of her strange fancies come true. Kasmir was amiable and charming, but certainly not anything more than a friend. He was Pokémon for heaven's sake! She couldn't let him get closer to her relationally. Secondly, she was his boss, so that would be like stepping down from her power. 'Raquaza' continued to climb with more determination and reached where Kasmir waited. "See?" She smiled triumphantly.

Kasmir shrugged and smiled. "Ok then." He continued to half-walk, half-hover up the rocky face to the entrance.

Milo glanced at the four rookies and smiled nervously. "I normally am working with electronics and the like, but I guess I'm going to supervising your training until further notice." It was the second day they had all been there. Though Milo liked kids and wanted to have his own one day, he didn't like the prospect of watching Pokémon battles and letting his research pile up.

Vekra caught his hint and thought to herself, _he doesn't want us to train, he'd much rather be nerdy. Great…_

Jaylon, Rin, and Caprico waited patiently for the next things Milo was going to say.

"So, I think today will be a double battle day. I'll pair you four up and have the two teams face off with each other. But before that, a crucial thing about battling with another trainer is talking over your strategy and letting your Pokémon meet each other." The nerdy man said. "So, I thin Jaylon and Rin should partner up, since Rin lost her round yesterday and Jaylon won. That leaves Vekra paired with Caprico."

Jaylon nodded and glanced to his teammate. Maybe they would be able to find out about their disobedient Pokémon and get them to work together. Caprico nodded quietly to Vekra.

Milo crossed his arms and said, "Ok, team #1 (Jaylon and Rin) will go to training room 122, and team #2 will go in room 123. Once an hour or so has passed, I'll call the teams for a battle. Ok?"

The four rookies nodded. After a few days of staying in this place, they knew the general places they were allowed to go into. They could find their way to the kitchens and lunch area for the three meals a day, they could find their assigned rooms, and they could find the battle rooms. All the essentials.

Jaylon and Rin got up first and went hastily to their assigned training room. They were eager to talk over their battle strategies and Pokémon. Somehow having disobedient Pokémon made them feel like they had more in common.

Vekra led the way to battle room 123, Caprico following after. She had no idea how he fought, except that he seemed to only fight with his Zangeese. He said he had four total Pokémon, so she could only guess at what Pokémon were on his team.

Jaylon and Rin sat down on the bleachers and glanced at each other.

"Do we let our Pokémon meet each other?" Rin asked.

"Yup," Jaylon replied and withdrew his four Pokéballs; two in each hand. He clicked them open and his four Hoenn Pokémon emerged. Rain the Zangoose, Hearth the Combusken, Dooma the Ninjask, and Oan the Swallot. The four Pokémon glanced around for opponent Pokémon, and then relaxed when no enemies presented themselves.

Rin nodded and called out her three Pokémon. Taynee the Sneasel, Lee the Buizel, and Frost the Riolu. These three Pokémon were radically different than Jaylon's own Pokémon. Frost immediately looked cross and stamped off to the corner to be away from the other Pokémon. Taynee looked insecure and hid behind the proud Buizel. The Buizel flexed and showed himself to be intimidating to the four Hoenn Pokémon.

Jaylon shrugged and addressed his Pokémon, "Ok, play nice guys. These Pokémon will be teammates in the next battle, so make friends, ok?"

Rin gave her own little encouragement. "These Pokémon are friends, so go ahead and meet them. Be nice…" she left off as she saw Frost sitting far away from the other Pokémon. She sighed in despair and sat back down.

Jaylon gazed at her Pokémon for a second and started, "So, how do you think we should battle double style? Who's your best Pokémon?"

(Pokémon Perspective)

Hearth the Combusken jumped at the arrival of three Pokémon she had never seen before. The blue dog-like Pokémon scoffed and walked off quickly. The dark-type Pokémon with a red feather as her left ear hid quickly behind the orange Pokémon, and in turn, the orange Pokémon tried to look intimidating.

_Check out these guns!_ He crooned and flexed his tiny arms, showing a ripple of muscle.

Hearth looked at her trainer and heard his instructions. It seemed odd to her to meet such strange Pokémon, but if Master Jaylon wanted it, then so be it. There was no better human than Jaylon in Hearth's eyes.

The orange Combusken walked forward, head bobbing slightly, and chirped_, hi, I'm Hearth. Who and what are you?_ She addressed the showy orange Pokémon.

_I'm Lee the Buizel. I'm from Sinnoh, and what the heck are you?_ The Buizel asked, throwing aside his act.

_A Combusken, I come from Hoenn. Are you fire-type?_

_Nope, see this inner tube? _Lee pointed to his own neck_. It keeps me afloat in water, which makes me water-type._

Hearth glanced around and saw that her teammates were being antisocial despite Jaylon's orders. Dooma was lazily hovering in the air, humming sadly. Oan looked like he was trying to get used to his new form and was at the same time looking for the beautiful Kirlia he had seen during the last battle. Rain quietly groomed her white fur apart from the group, but not close to the Riolu.

Hearth smiled with her eyes (smiling with a hard beak is out of the question). She would help Jaylon and get her 'teammates' talking with these Sinnoh Pokémon. _Hey, Lee, have you met my friends? _She pointed to Oan and said, _go and talk with Oan_. She blinked in confusion as the timid Sneasel continued to hide behind the Buizel even as he moved. That had to be stopped!

Hearth grabbed the Sneasel gently and introduced herself. This only frightened the Sneasel further due to the fear of type advantage. Hearth was two of her weaknesses. Taynee ran quickly to Lee, avoiding Hearth entirely.

The Combusken wasn't fazed yet. She strode up to the Riolu in the corner and introduced herself. What she didn't expect happened. The Riolu lashed out and gave her a nasty 'Sky uppercut' right under the chin without saying a word. Hearth staggered back and thought twice about speaking to such an uncouth Pokémon.

The orange chicken Pokémon went over to Dooma and asked the bug to talk with the Sneasel. Maybe the dark/ice-type Pokémon wouldn't be as scared of a bug-type. Dooma stopped humming sadly to herself and tried to say hello to the female Sneasel.

Taynee jumped and hid around Lee, who seemed impervious to anything. Lee was talking to Oan about attractive female Pokémon, and Oan liked the conversation. The Swallot kept on putting in that surely Kirlia had to be the most beautiful Pokémon in the world. Lee insisted that he had seen a picture of an Oshawott in Rin's newest Pokémon handbook and begged to differ. Taynee seemed to be invisible to the two male Pokémon.

Hearth was getting frustrated now. The Buizel was a social Pokémon and was doing well with Jaylon's Pokémon, but the Sneasel was hiding and the Riolu was violent. If these two trainers were going to have a good double team, the Pokémon had to get along better. The Combusken had taken full charge of the situation and pushed to make it work better.

The fire chicken wheeled on Rain, the only one of Jaylon's Pokémon who had not tried to make friends. _Rain! Get over here and get to know these Sinnoh Pokémon!_ She squawked.

Rain didn't even look at the fire Pokémon.

Hearth stamped over and pushed the Zangoose slightly. _Come on, you can't let Jaylon down!_

_I most certainly can!_ The Zangoose huffed and trotted away.

Rage boiled in hearth's stomach, threatening to become an 'ember' attack. _Fine, if you don't want to talk with the rest of us; then go by that fighting-type Pokémon._

_You can't order me around._

_I'll kick you and break your ribs again! _Hearth trilled.

Rain glared. _I don't like fighting-type Pokémon, they are my only weakness. In other words; NO!_ She stalked away and continued her grooming.

_**I'M**__ FIGHTING-TYPE, IDIOT!_ Hearth was on the edge of attacking out of rage. Remarkably, no other Pokémon paid her screeching any attention. She smoothed down her feathers and tried a different approach to helping the timid Sneasel become comfortable.

Rain smirked at the chicken's rage and sat down to groom herself again. She was bored and wanted to be as difficult as possible. She eyed the Riolu sitting like an emo in the corner, but refused to talk to him. She could smell the hatred and dark emotions flowing from him.

She ignored the rest of the Pokémon as best as she could, but the strange Sinnoh Pokémon were oddly captivating. She was experiencing the normal feeling that trained Pokémon feel when they meet other trained Pokémon. She watched the timid Sneasel hide by the Buizel and the Buizel talk proudly with the Swallot. Rain's gaze went back over to the Riolu again, but she busied herself with grooming again.

She finally gave in, rolled her eyes, and walked quietly over to the Riolu. She just had to at least get a scent to identify him later with. She sat down a Zangoose length away and sniffed.

Frost the Riolu felt her sitting close by and turned to face her; small red eyes blazing. He didn't speak, he didn't need to. His dangerous emotions were coming off him in waves that all Pokémon could smell or feel.

Rain ignored his stare and groomed her paw absent-mindedly.

_Don't you take hints? Get away from me!_ The Riolu hissed with malice.

_Like I give a fodder._ Rain sniffed. _Go on being emo like that. You seriously must be the worst Pokémon if you act like that._

Frost leapt to his black feet and ran up to her, pushing his masked face into her own. _Shut up, albino! You don't know anything about what I've been through! _He glared and growled.

Rain was slightly taken aback how rude and rash this Riolu was. _Do I need to care about some other Pokémon's problems? I just wanted to get a sniff of you… _she left off and asked a question, but regretted it. _And what is making you so emo?_

Frost growled and stepped back. He looked enraged, but something told Rain that he would answer her question. He sat down and growled angrily,_ I just… I meet my parents and they expect me to accept them like nothing happened. But I won't ever forgive them, they left me to… _he left off sounding more pained then angry.

Rain suddenly was interested. Did this Pokémon have a dark past like her own? _Yeah, what kind of parents did you have?_

_I didn't know them! My earliest memory is pain!_ He shot back.

_I didn't know my parents either. I grew up in a lab where humans were trying to get translation devices working._ Rain felt her anger rising as well. It irked her that her trainer was now joined up with the same organization that had made her a laughing stock of wild Zangeese.

Frost regarded her with a new light, as if he had found a Pokémon that finally spoke his language. _I might have been tested on for aura abilities, but I don't know for sure. No one knows what I was hurt for…_

_So you were a lab rat too?_

_I was captured and turned into one… I guess I was Milo Bertram's Pokémon. But he doesn't want to take me back; he thinks I'll be good for Rin. Feh._ He laughed haughtily. _She's the stupidest trainer ever._

_I think my Trainer has that title._ Rain huffed. Seriously, what kind of idiot caught a Pokémon that tried to kill him and expect the Pokémon to love him?

Frost smiled strangely. _You hate your trainer too? I thought most all Pokémon eventually liked their trainer. I thought I was the only Pokémon that hated my trainer._

_Humans are stupid, like, to the enth degree_. Rain found herself purring back. This Riolu had been tortured as a pup like her and he hated his trainer as well. She found herself liking this stubborn Pokémon a tad.

_I couldn't have said it better._ He let a slight look of happiness cross his features. Rain didn't know that seeing Frost happy was an extremely rare thing. Before now, it would have been easier to encounter a wild Entei in Hoenn than to get Frost to be happy.

Rain swished her tail on the dirt floor and purred louder. She noticed that his fur was in terrible condition. It hadn't been groomed for a while and it was slightly dirt-covered. She padded up closer to him and began to swipe her pink tongue over his head.

_What are you…?_ Frost broke from his moment of happiness and shook his head away from her tongue.

_You need a grooming._ She said firmly. _So hold still._ She licked his blue and black head quickly again. She felt his pelt becoming smooth under her grooming. She continued to purr while grooming. She felt slightly at home again, lecturing younger kits and grooming the messy ones.

Even though Frost had a clear type advantage and could swat her away easily, he settled down and let her groom him. Rain couldn't see his expression, but if she did, she would be astounded to see him closing his eyes in bliss and wagging his tail.

**Haha, now you see some pairings, no? If I could name the Rain x Frost pairing, I think I'd call it grumpyshipping or something like that **

**Thanks for reading and stay tuned to the next chapters. What is 'Raquaza' (I'm spelling it wrong) planning with Iron Isle?**


	24. Chapter 24, Strategy

**Chapter 24**

Vekra called out her Pokémon. Zuni the Grovyle pranced about happily to celebrate his freedom from the confines of the Pokéball. Her Metang hovered in the air, waiting emotionlessly for a battle and instructions. Trapinch sat awaiting orders as well, but scratched at the dirt happily when it thought Vekra wasn't looking. Her final Pokémon, a jumpy Wingull, fluttered around anxiously, as if expecting to be hurt if there wasn't a battle to be fought.

Caprico sent out his four Pokémon. His two twin Zangeese came out and hastily greeted each other. They were pretty much inseparable from each other. The other two Pokémon caught Vekra's interest; mainly because the other Pokémon didn't seem to fit in her stereotype of Caprico. The third Pokémon was a lovely female Leafeon. This rare Pokémon glanced at the Hoenn group carefully, but seemed to giggle (If that was possible for Pokémon) at Zuni's dance.

The fourth Pokémon looked even more out of place; it was a male Slowbro. It was lax in nature, but determined. It contrasted so blatantly with the quick and powerful Zangeese that Vekra couldn't help laughing slightly.

"Of all the Pokémon to have in a team, why mix a Slowbro with a Zangoose?" She asked the blue haired boy, a laugh in her voice.

Caprico shrugged. "For that very purpose. If I need a fast strong Pokémon to attack, I choose Pieces or Gemini. But if the opponent is faster than my twins, I have Cancer here to defend. He's a reliable Pokémon, even though he's slow." He gazed at his Pokémon and said calmly, "I got Virgo the Leafeon and Cancer the Slowbro here in this base. Raquaza has quite a store of Pokémon to give to trainers who need it."

Vekra nodded. She guessed it made sense to have a Slowbro in his team now. "Ok…" she said and asked, "So, for this double battle, what kind of plan should we use?"

"Pieces and Gemini prefer to fight with each other as backup, so I think I'll use my Leafeon or Slowbro instead this round. I don't know how many Pokémon we are allowed to use, so let's guess two for starters…"

The two began to discuss their battle plans while the Pokémon began to meet. They met and socialized much better than Jaylon and Hiku's Pokémon did.

(Pokémon's perspective)

Zuni jumped for joy. He crooned and glanced around the group of Pokémon. He knew his teammates and knew that they were stiff company. Wingull was the only slightly expressive Pokémon in the group. Metang was made of metal –and though it did look impressive as a Metang- it had no emotion and it rarely talked. Trapinch was battle hardy as well and didn't talk much.

The Grovyle looked over and saw a group of four Pokémon chatting to themselves. Now this looked like a much better crowd. He thought happily. The Grovyle skipped over to the four unfamiliar Pokémon and bowed comically.

The female Leafeon burst out laughing. _You are so funny, gecko-man!_ She said through chuckles.

Zuni was impressed by the instant friendliness. He smiled and answered, _and who are you, leaf maiden?_ It had been a while since he had seen a cute female, and he felt inclined to woo her.

_Virgo the Leafeon. And are you a new Pokémon?_ The Leafeon smiled in a friendly way but was not wooed.

_I'm not a new Pokémon; at least I don't think so. I belong to that female Trainer over there. I don't know what we are all doing here though_… He cleared his throat and added hastily, _and call me Zuni. I'm the only Pokémon Vekra nicknamed, so I take pride in that._

Cancer the Slowbro watched the exchange passively. The twin Zangeese looked over at the green gecko and bristled.

_Go away, stranger._ Pieces hissed, fur fluffing up.

_Yeah, don't hurt us and go away._ Gemini added to his sister's threat.

Virgo padded up to the two young Zangeese and groomed them a bit on the head to relax them. _Now, now, little ones, you should be nice to new Pokémon. This is Zuni. Say hi to Zuni now._

The young Zangeese relaxed and mewed in unison, _hi Zuni._ Even with introductions past, they still were wary of the gecko Pokémon and gave him odd, judgmental stares.

Virgo winked. _They are still young. Even though I've been with Caprico (our trainer) for a shorter amount of time, I treat these two as my own kits._ She looked over at the other Pokémon with curiosity. _Are those your teammates?_

_Yeah, stiff bunch…_ the Grovyle shrugged. _Metang and Trapinch were given to Vekra somehow, and they have been trained for hard combat. Wingull is a nervous wreck. I kind of miss the Geodude, but Vekra released him back to the wild_. He sighed in his thoughts. If Virgo considered the Zangeese as her kits, then she wasn't 'available'. Oh well…

The Slowbro walked slowly over to the silent Hoenn Pokémon. He sat down and lazily nibbled on an Oran berry. He slowly looked over at the Hoenn Pokémon to see if they had noticed the tasty snack.

Trapinch was sniffing the air delicately, but refused to move from a battle stance. Metang didn't pay any heed. Wingull however timidly scuttled over and peered at the berry in the pink Pokémon's hands.

Cancer the Slowbro smiled ever so slowly and handed the berry to the Wingull. Wingull pecked it and chirped happily. _Wow, thanks._

_Nooooooo proooobleeeeemmmm._ Cancer said in his dragging voice.

Virgo flicked her leaf tail over Zuni's shoulder and explained; _don't think Cancer is slow in the head. He's actually quite smart; it's just that it's in Slowpoke and Slowbro nature to talk slow. He doesn't talk very much because of it._

Zuni didn't have an amazing first impression of the Slowbro, but accepted Virgo's word.

Gemini glanced to his sister and the two Zangeese scampered away from the main group to play by themselves. The Grovyle watched them go and said to himself, _they don't seem to trust anyone but each other…_

_You don't know how true that is._ Virgo the Leafeon sat down and wrapped her leafy tail around her legs.

_So, are you sort of the head Pokémon here?_ Zuni asked. It was an unsaid rule that there was always a top Pokémon in a Pokémon team directed by a trainer. This Pokémon was either chosen by strength or trainer's favorite. Zuni was the head of his Pokémon team because he was the first Pokémon Vekra got and she let him out of the Pokéball more often than the others.

The female Leafeon shrugged. _Beats me, it's either me or Cancer, but I know that Caprico loves his Zangeese twins… So… it's all of us._

Zuni guessed different trainers had different styles of Pokémon hierarchy. He was satisfied with this answer, though he thought Virgo would be the best choice for head Pokémon.

Jaylon stared at Rin's drawings. In order to plan out well, she pulled out a piece of paper from her large bag and started to sketch their Pokémon. She was in fact a good cartoonist, though her style was frankly anime.

She held up her chart that had notes by the cartooned faces of the Pokémon. "Ok, so we want the best type advantage so that no matter what Pokémon they throw at us, we can fight effectively. Your Combusken is weak against water, ground, flying, and psychic. If I have Lee fight alongside of Hearth, then he can take care of the ground attacks and Pokémon. Vekra has a Trapinch (ground), Metang (steel/psychic), Wingull (water/flying) and I don't know what other Pokémon Caprico has. In other words, if you want to fight Vekra, I'm not going to be of help for type advantages.

"Frost is pretty much out of the question since he ignores me, but he's weak against flying and psychic. Taynee is weak against fighting, fire, steel, rock, and bug. She only offers protection from Metang; though there is a good chance that Vekra will want to show off her newly evolved Pokémon. Lee offers the best protection for Hearth, but Hearth frankly isn't a good choice to send against Vekra.

"If your first Pokémon was Dooma, then to cover for her weakness to: fire, electric, ice, rock, and flying; then Taynee or Lee could help out more effectively-"

"Ok, I don't need a Pokémon lecture…" Jaylon sighed and looked at the complex drawing Rin had made. She had gotten Pokémon battling down to a science! It was fascinating and all, but Jaylon didn't need all that info. "Let's just say I use…" he left off as he looked at his Pokémon again. He pointed and directed Rin's attention to Rain and Frost. "What…?" he said in confusion.

Rin looked and blushed a bit. Rain was grooming Frost! "How sweet." She said in a slightly higher voice. She couldn't help feeling happy for Frost. If he liked Jaylon's Zangoose, he might evolve yet!

"Yeah, or maybe we have even more to worry about; now our evil Pokémon have joined forces…" the Hoenn boy frowned.

"If Frost and Rain become mates, does that make us in-laws?" Rin asked timidly.

"What?" Jaylon jumped in surprise.

"Never mind…" Rin covered quickly. She was a breeder at heart and saw potential for the couple.

"Ok…" the brown haired rookie said cautiously. He glanced at the two Pokémon and remarked. "Hey, what if we sent out Rain and Frost for the first round? Vekra wouldn't expect you to send out your Riolu because of his behavior, and Frost will battle if Rain does as well." He smiled with a slight slyness. "Rain has the attack 'thunderbolt' now and she can take care of flying types. Frost will be safe from flying attacks now."

Rin nodded, but paused. "It does sound like a great plan, but our Pokémon hate us. Who's to say that they'll fight effectively? Can their attraction be enough?"

The brown haired boy shrugged. "It's worth a shot. Maybe we can practice a little." He glanced up at the wall clock and saw that the better of an hour had already passed. "We don't have much time, but it's worth a shot."

"What should our plan be for attack?" Vekra glanced at her Pokémon, trying to figure out the best plan.

Caprico/'Gible' shrugged and said in his even voice, "I'll have Cancer, my Slowbro, at the first Pokémon. He will be defense and support any of your Pokémon you wish to send out."

Vekra/'Dieno' nodded. _Then I don't want to use Metang as my first, because Slowbro is psychic type. If Rin calls out her Sneasel, we won't have a chance. _She let a small smile creep over her features. Her side has an advantage of surprise. Jaylon and Rin had showed their whole team yesterday, but Caprico was a mystery yet. "Ok, then I should use Zuni. If your Slowbro knows surf, he can injure both of the opponent Pokémon while doing barely anything on Zuni."

"OK, it's a plan."

Rain ceased her grooming; satisfied that Frost's head was clean. His blue and black fur shone in the light. She sat and continued purring, much to her own shock. She hadn't purred like this ever, not when she lived in the Zangoose clan, and not even when she attacked Jaylon or made him look like an idiot. She watched the Riolu at her forelegs with her black eyes, waiting for him to remove himself from her presence.

Frost had other ideas. He remained leaning on Rain's foreleg, still wagging his tail. If he was a cat Pokémon, he surely would have been purring as well.

The Zangoose didn't know what to do, so she stayed put by the Riolu.

The moment was broken by Jaylon yelling out Rain's name. The Zangoose hissed in frustration.

Frost stopped leaning on her forepaw when he heard her hiss. _What is it?_ He said in a strange, dreamy tone.

Rin called out to Frost for him to join the trainers in the middle of the battle field. Both trainers beckoned to them.

The two Pokémon glanced at each other. _What the fodder do they want us for now?_ Rain hissed, but didn't come forward to her trainer. It would be much more fun if she gave Jaylon a hard time.

Before Jaylon or Rin could fight their Pokémon into position to practice, Milo stuck his head through to training room door. The nerdy man instructed, "Ok, now that you are ready, come to Training room 158."

Jaylon frowned. "Where's 158?" he knew a few training rooms by now, but he hadn't seen a room 158 yet.

Milo sighed and answered, "Room 158 is down the hall and around the corner. It's bigger and has a better bleacher set. Quite a few people have turned out to see this… no pressure." the man closed the door again, leaving the trainers to come at their own pace.

Jaylon shrugged to his partner trainer. "I guess we will have to see when the battle starts. We are still using Rain and Frost, right?" The brown haired boy looked back at his Pokémon. Hearth was the most loyal Pokémon, Oan had newly evolved, and Dooma needed to win a match… he wanted all of his team to fight, he loved them all.

"Yeah, that's probably our best option." Rin nodded back and returned all three of her Pokémon back to their respective balls.

Jaylon also returned his Pokémon in the flash of red light. It felt so normal now to return a Pokémon. A month or so ago, he had been without a Pokémon and dreaming of Legendary Pokémon helping him to find his parents. Now his parents were found, he met a Mewtwo, and he had a good team of four Pokémon. _Things have changed a lot!_

The two rookies went out of their training room and went down the hallway as Milo instructed. They followed the noise of loud cheering to an open door. This room was a pseudo-stadium of sorts, complete with bleachers circling the better part of the dirt floor arena. Jaylon gulped in surprise and nervousness.

The stands had a decent number of people watching and cheering for the current match. The crowd was about fifty strong. This was Jaylon's biggest crowd for a Pokémon battle ever before. He didn't like the prospect of fighting with Pokémon when fifty people were cheering his team or the team with Vekra and Caprico on. And what's more, the walls seemed to echo the calls of the spectators.

Rin looked nervous as well; she raised her eyebrows in a concerned expression.

There was a match going on at the moment; a regular trainer against 'Salamence', the hot-headed captain of 'Raquaza'. 'Raquaza' herself was sitting in the stands, smiling and clapping as the battle went on. 'Salamence' was commanding a fearsome Tyranitar to use 'earthquake' against the opposing Stuntank.

The ground buckled and shook, throwing Jaylon and Rin off-balance, but the stands were still in good shape. Jaylon could now see evidence of a Mr. Mime and a Hypno holding the bleachers barely off the ground with their mind powers. Jaylon wondered if that was the same Mr. Mime that had congratulated Hiku, Vekra and himself after defeating the Golem.

Rin righted herself and pointed to the stands. It would be safer to watch from there. Vekra and Caprico were already waiting in the bleachers, sitting on the lowest row. Jaylon wanted to go away from them, just to keep his rivalry going. He stepped over to a nearby bleacher and walked up the stands a bit before sitting down. Rin followed her teammate and sat beside him.

The trainer beside Jaylon loudly cheered as the Stuntank fainted. The battle raged on, and the neighbor cheered again as the next Pokémon was revealed; a lazy-eyed Octilery. The rookie slightly regretted sitting by this booming fan.

Jaylon suddenly spotted a group of familiar people and felt inclined to greet them. He left Rin and walked down a step to address the raven-haired person. The rookie placed his hand gently on the figure's shoulder and said, "Hey, Hiku, I didn't think I would see you out of bed."

The raven haired girl turned around quickly and joy lit up her face. "Oh, Jaylon!" she exclaimed and hugged his neck. She released him and patted to a space near her for him to sit down on. Hiku's family waved to welcome him to their group.

"Oh, Jaylon. I haven't seen you for a while. I was told I slept for a few days or something." She gushed happily, her eyes shining. "Then when I woke up, I saw my family and they told me how brave you were to save me. I don't remember much about the kidnapping… but I wanted to thank you." She blushed. Hiku was still in bad condition despite her being out of bed. She had an oxygen tank by her side and plastic tubes going up her nose. She wore a hospital gown still and she had slight bags under her eyes.

Jaylon sighed and dropped his shoulders. "It's good to see you ok. After seeing that creep stab you, I…" he took a breath and continued, "Well, you're in much better condition now." he said and wrapped his arm around her shoulders. He never wanted anything to happen like that again to his teammate!

Hiku smiled and pointed to the level of seats in front of her. "My Pokémon are watching the fight in the next row." She said. Suddenly, the heads of Akama the Kirlia, Tamaki the Breloom, and Nano sitting on the Breloom's head became visible. They all called out their species names happily at the brown-haired rookie. Hiku patted Tamaki with surprising confidence. "Tamaki isn't as scary now as a Breloom. I thanked Kasmir a whole lot for his training." She explained her familiarity to the once feared Pokémon.

Tamaki, still as serious as ever, received the pat without a change in expression.

Jaylon smiled slightly. Hiku was so sweet; she probably didn't suspect that Kasmir was a Pokémon in disguise. He was also touched that she was much more comfortable with Tamaki. He couldn't help thinking back to when she had first seen the Shroomish. "Yeah, I saw Tamaki evolve; he was battling Hearth when it happened."

"Really?" She faced him again with a delighted expression. "That's so cool."

Jaylon shrugged. "Yeah…" he left off coolly. He really missed Hiku. It had been far too long since he'd seen her in good health. He wondered if their adventure plan around Hoenn was still possible. He glanced at her whole family and asked Hiku, "So, why are you here?"

Hiku giggled slightly. "I heard that a trainer from Hoenn would be fighting in the next round, so I hauled myself out of bed to watch."

Jaylon laughed in reply. "Really?"

A loud cheer from the crowd blocked out Hiku's reply. Agent J glanced back to the battlefield and saw that 'Salamence' had won the match. The red-haired man in blue Salamence cosplay did a little victory dance with his remaining Pokémon: Ariados.

"You're up." Hiku said kindly and patted his shoulder. "Are you ready?"

Jaylon forgot about his joy at seeing his partner in better shape and felt dread sink in his stomach. "Oh crap, I forgot about that…" he stood and walked a step down the bleachers. "I'm fighting double-style with Rin, so be sure to cheer loud, ok?" he said in a weaker voice. The audience was a daunting prospect to Pokémon fighting.

"Ok, but I'm cheering for both sides, Vekra deserves encouragement, don't you think?" Hiku smiled innocently.

Jaylon still couldn't get over that she was so sweet. Vekra had been crass to them and Hiku still gave Vekra a chance? _What made her so forgiving?_ He got an idea and held out a Pokéball to her. "I think Oan might want to watch this fight. He's not going to be in it and I think he'll like to watch with your Pokémon." Jaylon well remembered that Oan liked Akama quite a lot. It would be a nice treat to show off Oan's evolution and have him be happy.

Hiku nodded and took the Pokéball. She shooed him on so that he wouldn't be late for the announcement.

Jaylon waved happily and went down to the dirt floor. Rin joined him on the ground and waited to hear the announcer call out the next match. While this was happening, the lines in the dirt were being redone by Smeargles paint and the loser trainer was escorted to the medic wing.

'Salamence' walked past them on his way out and huffed out loud. "Such a waste of time…" he muttered angrily.

Jaylon let the angry man pass by without any trouble. The rookie was feeling his heart start to race. This felt like a nightmare where people from everywhere are there to watch you mess up. He rubbed his forehead and found damp sweat clinging to his sleeve.

Rin glanced and saw that Vekra and Caprico were also waiting to come on the field. She couldn't tell if they were nervous or not.

A pompous announcer with a cordless mic ran to the field and called, "Wasn't that a great fight, folks?" He got a good reply from the crowd and continued, "Now, up next is a double team fight made of rookies. Give it up for the newest recruits!"

The cheer was louder than before and a moment had to be spent waiting for silence. "On the red side, we have Caprico Lance from our very own Johto! His teammate is Vekra Ashcroft from Ever Grande City in Hoenn." The crowd cheered and applauded appreciatively.

Jaylon let out a small laugh. Vekra was probably ticked at the order of trainers introduced. If anything, he expected her to wear the 'pants' of the team.

The announcer turned and announced with rising passion, "And in the white corner, we have Jaylon Wicklow from Mauville City in Hoenn. His teammate is Rin Vanden from Hearthome, Sinnoh."

Jaylon smiled as heard cheering for his team. He glanced at the ground and saw that there wasn't any color in the dirt signifying whether the closest side was red or white side. _How do they decide which one is which? _He wondered.

He suddenly jumped as a person helping with the battles pushed him forward. "Come on, go out to the field." He said.

The brown haired Hoenn boy stumbled forward to the marked area for trainers. Rin joined him quickly. Vekra and Caprico were already standing in the opposing side, holding out their Pokéballs. _Wow, they must not be nervous at all, they are on top of things…_ he thought bitterly.

The announcer went over to the sidelines and readied the match. Line guards rushed to their places and a ref stood at the center line. "This battle has no substitutions and only one Pokémon per trainer is allowed. Ready? Release your Pokémon into the arena and let's fight!"


	25. Chapter 25, Iron Isle

**Chapter 25**

"They are in the first chamber we come to." Kasmir pointed to the mouth of the cave. His expression was passive, but his eyes seemed to glow with excitement.

Corinne was fed up with climbing. She wondered bitterly why Hianna didn't do this herself. Was it because she didn't know Sinnoh very well? The blonde woman sighed angrily and pulled herself up the last ledge of rocks. She panted beside Kasmir, annoyed yet again that he could just psychic powers to float up the cliff face.

Kasmir waited for her to catch her breath. "Do you want me around when you start talking about this secret mission?" he asked with slight disappointment.

"Yeah, I was just joking back there…" Corinne panted and shed her outer jacket. She tied the arms of the jacket together around her waist and straightened herself to look energized. "You can come in and listen, just don't breathe a word outside here about it."

The Mewtwo nodded quickly and beamed. That wasn't a very convincing face.

Corinne walked into the entrance of Iron Island and paused to let her eyes become accustomed to the gloom. Satisfied that she could see, she walked into the cave further. 'Raquaza' heard the low voices of the two men echoing around on the walls. She headed for the sound.

The gloom revealed two men speaking to each other at a close proximity, as if talking in secret.

Kasmir jumped and could hardly restrain himself. He trembled with some emotion and launched himself at Riley. "Sir Aaron!" he called out and nearly hugged the blue haired man to the ground, but stopped short by some sort of self-control.

Riley whipped around and held up his hands in a defensive pose. "You…!" He said unhappily.

Kasmir smiled and scratched his neck nervously. "Heh, hey… I know it's you Riley…" he stammered.

The blue haired man rolled his eyes, but kept his hands up. "This happens every single I time meet you, seriously. Don't you ever learn that I'm not Sir Aaron?"

"But you look so much like him… you even have the same hat and a Lucario…" Kasmir pouted. He had regarded Sir Aaron from Aura Guardian times as his hero, and still missed the hero of old.

"Yeah, and that old hero is mentioned every time you meet me too. Honestly, I could do without repetition." Riley replied tersely.

Corinne frowned. Riley was usually happy and collected. Was Kasmir just getting on his bad side or was something else influencing his emotions? She stepped forward and called attention thankfully away from the Mewtwo. "Hello, it's me, Corinne Martin."

Riley didn't seem in better moods, indicating that something else was going on. "Welcome back. What brings you here, more training?" the Sir Aaron look-a-like responded hollowly.

Byron, who was silent through all the exchange until now, went up to Corinne and gave her a side hug. "Hey, it's been a while, eh? Still training Pokémon nowadays?" His normally red hair betrayed streaks of grey. Corinne had met this gym leader of Canalave when she was challenging the Gym Leaders of Sinnoh to show up her rival. In fact, much of Corinne's training involved the goal of beating May in a battle. She was a bit crazy when she was young; thank Arceous that she had grown out of it.

Corinne shrugged good-naturedly. "I'm not training a whole lot of Pokémon these days anymore." She didn't wish to say that she was the head of the organization that Uchiha unearthed to be vile. That wouldn't do.

"Shame… you had potential too." The scruffy Gym Leader shrugged and stepped back for a normal conversation.

Riley kept his glum expression and waited for her to speak on why she was there. Kasmir seemed slightly embarrassed that he had mistaken Riley for Sir Aaron once again. Byron looked composed, but also waited for Corinne's explanation.

Corinne sighed and pulled out the other 'Raquaza's note. "I'm here to ask you a strange request at behest of my friend." She started, "I was wondering who exactly has ownership of this island."

Byron glanced over to the tense man. "Riley has called this place home for a long time, so I think he owns this place, though I do have a small hideout built from the public eye." The gym leader held out his hand for Riley to speak for himself.

The blue haired man glared. "Sure, I did call this place home, but no trainers have been around here for a while. I've been forced to start a business to make enough money from me to eat. I thought there would be a good number of trainers still around Sinnoh, but I suppose that they are too lazy to ride a boat up here." Riley muttered discontentedly.

Corinne nodded, understanding his frustrations now. "So do you still own this island?"

Riley groaned and said as slowly as he could manage, "I was just talking with the esteemed Gym Leader here about that."

'Raquaza' understood now. "You are in the process of handing over the island?"

The two men nodded solemnly. Kasmir seemed impressed, as if he expected her to be using psychic powers. However, she only guessed at this conclusion due to being a female and sensing emotion better.

"Then I will address both of you as owners until an agreement is reached." Corinne took a deep breath and said as matter-of-factly as possible, "Could I request permission to start construction on some houses on this isle? I will pay for your expenses and materials naturally."

All three men (including Kasmir) looked caught by surprise. "Why would you want houses on this rock?" Riley asked with scorn.

"It's a precaution…" Corinne said quickly. "I have four Pokémon to aid you in building in you so allow me to. Two of these Pokémon were imported from the region of Unova and are good Pokémon to have around construction sites."

"Precaution against what?" Kasmir had curiosity written over his face.

Corinne hesitated and answered, "My friend feels that our place is threatened, and that we might have to flee… She wants a haven to flee to." She continued in a stronger voice, "But I don't think such a thing will be necessary. I'm only setting up a few buildings as a fall-back."

Riley and Byron still looked confused, but the Mewtwo was concerned. "She's _that_ scared? She thinks we have to hide?"

Corinne nodded slightly to the Mewtwo.

Oan the Swallot was released from his Pokéball. But instead of finding a battle field and angry Pokémon to duke out, he found himself in the stands of a decent sized-crowd. He blinked his little red eyes and took in where he was. It was very strange to see his trainer in the battle field and not be with his trainer.

The purple blob Pokémon suddenly saw the raven-haired girl that was his trainer's partner. He remembered meeting her before. He suddenly felt elated. Hiku was the trainer of Akama the Kirlia!

Oan looked and saw that Hiku's Pokémon were all seated, watching the battle. Oan's heart leapt as he saw the beautiful green-haired Pokémon sitting so daintily on the other side of Tamaki the Breloom.

Tamaki looked over at the Swallot in surprise, but then let his face smooth over in a mask of complacency. _What brings you here, poison-type?_ The fighting/grass Pokémon asked flatly.

Oan lifted his blobby hands in a shrug to compensate for the lack of shoulders. _I don't know…_ he trailed off as he saw the female Kirlia. _Can I sit by Akama?_ He asked quickly.

Tamaki looked at Oan with a slight hint of distaste.

Nano, sitting on top of Tamaki's mushroom head, smiled and chirped. _Hey, Oan! Great battle last time! I didn't know that you'd evolve so soon. I guess that weird Mewtwo knew though. I don't hate you 'cause you beat me._ The sassy Pokémon wagged his little finned tail.

The Swallot smiled slightly, but waited to sit by the prettiest Pokémon in the world.

Nano tapped Tamaki's mushroom cap head and chirped, _come now and let Oan sit by Akama. He did help me when the evil Tentacool hurt me way back when._

The Breloom made room for the large purple blob to cross and sit (if Swallots could be considered to have the ability to sit without legs) by the dainty Kirlia. Oan let his skin heat up as he was closer to Akama.

The Kirlia looked at him with her red eyes and forced a smile. _Uh… hi?_ She said.

Oan could float from happiness. She had said 'hi' to him! _Hhhhiiiiiiii…_ he dragged his words with a dreamy expression on his face. Maybe Jaylon had let him watch the fight to be with Akama. What a nice trainer!

Cancer the Slowbro emerged from the Pokémon into the cheering area. He wasn't expecting an audience, but he remained calm. He could feel that his trainer was nervous, so Cancer told himself that he had to give confidence to his trainer.

Cancer the Slowbro saw another flash of light and saw the quirky Grovyle from before leap out beside him. The Slowbro might have been slow in talking and feeling pain, but he wasn't completely stupid. He suspected that his trainer and the female trainer were forming a double-battle team.

Zuni jumped and spun around to take in the stands with fifty or so people. _Crap! I've never fought with a crowd! How the heck am I supposed to take all of them on?_ The Grovyle fretted.

Cancer sighed and forced his slow speech the express a need for calm. _Wweeee oooonllyyyy aarrrreeee ffiiiggghtinnnnngg tthooooseee trraiiinnerrrrssss_. He pointed to Jaylon and Rin pulling out Pokéballs.

Zuni jumped again, nerves taut. _So, we are partners in this fight? I hope Vekra knows what she's doing…_

Cancer was used to being underestimated. He took no offense. He turned his head slowly to see who he would be fighting. He absentmindedly pulled an Oran berry from his shell covered tail and nibbled on it. He used his spikey shell to impale berries on and then eat them at his leisure. The pink water/psychic Pokémon watched as the red flashes indicated the opponents.

He was surprised to see the stubborn Riolu standing in the field. The other Pokémon was a Zangoose. At first, the Zangoose looked a bit like Pieces, but cancer knew the difference. This female Zangoose was older and had a slightly different red marking than that of Pieces. He let himself smile slowly. He had practiced against Zangeese before and knew their strengths and weak points.

Zuni saw the Riolu and Zangoose and mustered up the courage to take a battle stance. _So, I get to battle the fierce Zangoose! Wingull and Metang kind of fear you, but I don't!_

And so the word fight before a Pokémon fight began.

Rain the Zangoose sniffed and waved her tail high in the air_. Please, I could wipe out all of your team with one claw!_

Frost the Riolu glanced over and was surprised not only that he was called out as the first choice, but that Rain was his partner. What stupid schemes was Rin concocting? _Hey_, he addressed Rain, _why are we our trainer's first choice?_

Rain shrugged and purred ever so slightly at his presence. _Our trainers are just stupid; they think the pressure of a crowd will make us listen or something_.

Zuni jumped up and down, releasing nervous energy_. Come on, quit stalling! I want to pummel you Pokémon!_

Cancer observed the Pokémon with his own way. He didn't like talking. The fight was going to be tough, but Cancer was a determined Pokémon. He had the advantage of feeling pain slowly. The pink Slowbro put his Oran berry back on his shell-tail and waited for the match to start.


	26. Chapter 26, Double Battle!

**Chapter 26**

Vekra called out to Zuni first. "Zuni, 'leaf-blade' on the Zangoose!" She could hardly believe that the opposing team had sent out their disobedient Pokémon. What was the point? She didn't want to provoke the Riolu after seeing its brutal fighting against Caprico earlier. But the Zangoose on the other hand didn't seem to have a blatant temper.

Caprico nodded beside her, understanding that he was to direct Cancer to fight the Riolu. The blue haired boy nodded and addressed the pink Pokémon, "Cancer, psychic on the Riolu."

(Pokémon Perspective)

Rain the Zangoose heard the orders from the opposing side and hissed. She completely ignored anything Jaylon said to her and glanced at Frost. She ran into him, saving him from the psychic attack from the Slowbro. She felt the mind-power press against her being painfully and she yowled. But it was better for her to take a psychic attack.

Frost recovered from the push and saw that the Zangoose had helped him big time. He barked and vaulted to stop Zuni's leaf-blade attack with his own 'Sky-uppercut' attack to Zuni's chin.

Zuni's attack went wide and he staggered back, massaging his bruised chin. The Grovyle wasn't expecting the Riolu to attack, and much less have the opponent Pokémon received the opposite attack intended for them. Why did Rain take the psychic attack **for** the Riolu? The Grovyle decided to fight back at the Riolu. He used the leaf-blade once more, this time slicing at Frost's arms.

Frost yelped and jumped back. His arms were now bleeding from the cut, though it wasn't too deep. Rin yelped for him to use 'vacuum wave', but he refused to pay attention.

Rain saw his blood and cursed. She fluffed out her pelt and launched herself at Zuni.

Cancer was happy to sit back and watch the other Pokémon fight in close proximity. He didn't want to feel left out of the match, so he obeyed his trainer and used a 'surf' attack. Water seeped up from the ground and gathered around the pink Pokémon before spilling out all over the arena.

The Pokémon received some damage from the hit, with water pounding their bodies. Zuni shook the water off his hide, relatively unhurt. Frost and Rain were soaked and slightly battered. Caprico and Vekra were doused by the wave, and Jaylon and Rin were splashed with water on the other side of the ring. The paint that the Smeargles from before had put down so carefully was washed away in once sweep, leaving slightly muddy ground to fight on.

The audience gave a cheer for the well-used surf attack, startling most all Pokémon and trainers on the field.

Cancer yawned lazily, but not as an attack. The Slowbro wanted to taunt the two opponent Pokémon, but a taunt would take forever to say. Instead he took an Oran berry and nibbled on it. This was a physical taunt, as if saying, 'I could eat and fight at the same time because you're so slow-paced and boring'.

Zuni lunged forward and used a 'pursuit' attack on the Zangoose by direction of his trainer. Rain took the hit and hissed; her wet fur didn't allow her to fluff out in anger.

Frost ran in a quickly used 'vacuum wave' at Zuni's face. He barked angrily without words.

The Grovyle was getting the idea now. His enemies were not listening to their trainers, and they defended each other: such a difference from when Frost just stood around and didn't care. To beat them, Zuni would have to ignore the trainers' commands, because they won't help him predict his opponents' moves. Secondly, he needed to get one down first, so they didn't attack him at once.

_Cancer,_ the green gecko called to his lax teammate, _do you know 'yawn' attack?_

The Slowbro nodded slowly and yawned widely and loudly.

Rain saw and heard the yawn and yawned back, getting drowsy. Frost avoided watching the yawn and glanced at his partner with concern. _Hey, Rain… Why are you sleepy? This is a battle!_

Rain shook herself a little to stay awake. Now she wanted to give that Slowbro a beating! She heard Jaylon calling out the attack of 'thunder bolt'. She was already planning to use that, so she did it anyways. She gathered the electric energy in her body and sent it streaming at the pink Pokémon.

Cancer saw the light coming from the thunder bolt, but it took five seconds to feel the stinging, burning pain that attack delivered. He yowled in pain after the attack hit, and it took another five seconds for the electric attack to register as non-existent. Cancer's personality wasn't meant for a Slowbro body, he hated having his reflexes so slow.

Frost leapt forward as well, using a 'quick attack' to smash into Cancer's side with unbelievable speed. Cancer took ten seconds to feel the pain and register the pain over again.

While all this was happening, Zuni was still trying to dry off his skin from the surf attack. He waved his leafed arms in an attempt to fan himself. He only succeeded in making Vekra groan and the onlookers giggle at the strange Grovyle. The Grovyle didn't necessarily like that laughter and ceased his drying dance. He looked back to the fight and ran to Cancer's side. He fought the Riolu once again, slicing with leaf-blade and parrying 'sky uppercut' attacks.

Rain wobbled on her feet in the muddy filed. The yawn attack was taking effect. She heard Frost curse angrily at Zuni and Jaylon giving her encouragement. Her mind was feeling so tired… a little nap wouldn't hurt, right?

Cancer saw her fighting sleep and said in his slow and dreamy way, _ssssllllleeeeeeeeeeeeeeeppppp_. That did the trick. Rain collapsed in the mud, asleep. Cancer was pleased with the turnout of the battle so far. Now he and Zuni would gang-up on Frost while rain slept. At least, that was what he wanted. It was Caprico's final say in the matter.

Zuni slashed at Frost and sent the smaller Pokémon stumbling back with another fresh wound. Frost was becoming frustrated. He gripped at his wounded shoulder and glanced over to his teammate. Rain had fallen asleep! _Of all the-_ he growled. _Rain, get up!_

The slumbering Zangoose didn't stir.

Cancer heard his trainer call out a psychic attack. The pink Pokémon hesitated slightly. Two Pokémon against one was unfair, especially when Cancer had type-advantage. But the Slowpoke pushed it outside his head. He focused the psychic energy on the Riolu and threw him back near his trainer's feet.

Frost cried out in pain and skidded back in the mud. The psychic attack had been very strong and painful, and Frost was slightly grateful that he had not fainted from it. Then his anger flared. The Slowbro was certainly strong enough to knock him out with a powerful move like that. The stupid water/psychic Pokémon was pulling punches! Frost got back to his feet and let out a furious growl. _You scum-bag!_

Zuni held out his arms in another 'leaf-blade' attack. _Sorry, but you can't win this._ The Grovyle stated.

Rin was holding her hand to her mouth, a concerned look on her face.

Jaylon yelled at Rain to wake up.

Vekra nodded to Caprico and they ordered their Pokémon to knock out Frost.

Corinne Martin (Codename Raquaza) shook hands with Byron and Riley in turn. Byron accepted the four Pokéballs and eyed them thoughtfully. "Well, are you going to pay up front or should we wait until later for the expenses?" Inside the four Pokéballs were a Machop, a Machoke, a Timburr, and a Gurdurr. The last two Pokémon were the Pokémon native to Unova.

Corinne produced a small wad of currency from the purse. "This is half, and later I will give you the rest." She nodded and bowed respectfully. "Thank you again for your cooperation." She looked at the list and grimaced. The next steps were best done back in the Mt. Silver base, and it involved cataloging Pokémon and getting captains to spread out and do specific tasks. One of these said tasks was to contact the gym leaders of Hoenn, Johto, and Kanto. Corinne nodded to Kasmir. "Ok, let's get back to base."

"Hold up," the husky, red-haired gym leader in a cape stepped in. "I can't have to stopping by without showing you my gym. I've renovated since you've seen it, and I can't help showing it off to a trainer that beat me a while back." Byron smiled kindly.

'Raquaza' glanced at Kasmir to see if he was ok with it. The Mewtwo looked excited, so Corinne nodded her head. "Ok, we'll come with."

"I can teleport you guys, it'll be faster than a boat." Kasmir volunteered.

Byron looked at the blonde boy with skepticism. "What are you, a psychic like Sabrina?"

"Uh… yeah!" Kasmir answered hastily.

Riley knew better. "He's not a psychic human, he's a psychic Pokémon."

"Hey!" Kasmir snapped indignantly.

The blue haired man huffed. "Seriously, and he's a Mewtwo nonetheless. He and I have met on several occasions and he's most certainly a Mewtwo. It doesn't make any sense to me…"

Byron raised his thick eyebrows, but didn't say anything. "I was wondering how you got here without a psychic Pokémon…"

The Mewtwo grumbled to himself but didn't let down his human guise. "Fine, I'm a Mewtwo. I like to look like a human because it's good camouflage. Honestly, there are some crazy people trying to catch the real Mewtwo and have ended up annoying me instead. Now, can I teleport you guys to Canalave or what?" he liked to keep people fooled, but no matter what, he ended up slipping up somehow or someone who recognized him gave it away. It was frustrating to add Byron as a person who knew what he really was. _At least I have most of the rookies fooled…_ he thought glumly.

Byron nodded, forgetting the strangeness of the boy. "Certainly, just as long as my boat can end up back in the docks in Canalave."

Riley held up his hand. "Count me out, I'm staying here."

Kasmir nodded ruefully and gathered up the energy to teleport the two humans to the port city. It was a bit harder to perform, but he teleported them safely.

Canalave was a beautiful city. It had stone streets, many harbors and docks, and tall buildings that were made of ornamental stones. It wasn't a colorful town, but rather an artful town with varieties of building designs. The town was surrounded by one side water and the three other sides by a dense forest. Had this been Kanto, the forest would have been a place of fear from wild Pokémon. But Sinnoh was safer, and Pokémon rarely attacked in swarms.

Kasmir, Corinne, and Byron glanced around the city and smiled to one another.

Kasmir pointed to the sky south of them and asked, "Is there a festival or something over there? Can we go?" He was happy again, grinning like a Cheshire cat.

Byron peered in the direction and frowned. "I didn't know of a festival scheduled for today. What makes you think there's one over there?"

"Don't most Sinnoh festivals have bonfires? Or was that Hoenn? I forgot…" he paused and scratched his head.

"Bonfire?" Byron was getting a sinking feeling. "Let's investigate." The three ran for the smoke in the air. As they passed houses and friendly shop vendors, the smoke was becoming more visible. Byron grimaced and pushed himself to run faster.

"What's wrong?" Corinne saw the leader's face was contorted in some strange negative emotion.

"That's in the direction of my gym!" he huffed while running.

**A/N: Haha. That's all I have to say. Next chapter you'll see who wins the double battle and see what is happening in Canalave. And also, I'm going to introduce the captains soon as well. I don't even know them all that well 0.0**

**Thanks again for reading and reviewing, and please continue to do so. :)**


	27. Chapter 27, Riot

**Chapter 27**

Frost didn't like how the battle was turning out. Sure, he had higher levels than Zuni and he had legendary stamina typical of Riolus, but with two Pokémon charging at him and aiming to beat him senseless, he had very low hopes. He blocked out the sound of Rin calling out to him frantically. The audience was surprisingly quiet, as if holding its collective breath.

The Riolu had to wake up Rain or it would be all over.

Cancer the Slowpoke charged for a head-butt in his typical Slowbro fashion; slowly. Zuni opened his mouth to spit out a hail of bullet seeds. Frost thought fast on how to avoid getting beaten. Acting more on instinct, he used a 'vacuum wave' to collide with the Grovyle's 'bullet seed'.

The collision of the two special attacks created an unexpected explosion of power. Frost fell back from the shock wave and shielded his face. The Riolu coughed through the dust cloud formed by the collision and glared through the dust. The Slowbro could come from any side to head-butt him. Frost hadn't had any aura training and he cursed his luck bitterly. If only he could see through the dust.

There was a noise to Frost's left and he squinted to try to see. Then he was roughly hit on his right. Zuni the Grovyle was now visible through the dust, leaves on his arms glowing.

Frost gripped his cheek and found yet another wound from the gecko Pokémon. He growled angrily and slammed into Zuni with a 'quick attack'. Frost was losing blood, but his hate and will powered him on to fight the annoying Hoenn Pokémon. If only frost had the attack 'frustration', then he would be unbeatable!

The dust settled to reveal Cancer standing in place. His normally placid face was twisted in anger. He seemed unable to move for some reason.

The reason made itself clear the next second. Rain, who was covered in mud but awake, leapt over the opponent Pokémon and slammed herself into the Grovyle. Zuni wasn't expecting a surprise attack from the formerly sleeping Pokémon and was sent crashing back.

Frost grinned in spite of himself. The explosion must have woken her up, and the dust in the air hid her thunderbolt attack on Cancer, thus paralyzing him. That couldn't have gone better if Frost had planned it himself.

Rain shook her muddy pelt and stepped off Zuni. The Grovyle was knocked out cold. She purred and glanced at Frost. _Sorry about that nap, that Slowbro is so boring._ She joked.

Vekra returned Zuni to his Pokéball and mad a sound expressing her disgust. However, the crowd of onlookers cheered for the clever assault. Jaylon cheered along with the crowd.

Caprico wasn't fazed by Cancer's paralysis. "Cancer, eat your Cheri berry." He instructed.

Cancer the Slowbro reached to his tail and picked a cherry-looking berry from one of the spikes. The pink Pokémon was far from done in this fight. He swallowed the berry whole and felt his muscles obeying him once again.

_Seviper fodder!_ Rain cursed as she realized that the Slowbro had a whole collection of berries on his tail. _He'll outlast us with all of those berries. We've got to stop that from happening!_

Frost groaned. Just when it was looking good again, the battle didn't look fantastic. The dog-like Pokémon knew that he himself wasn't going to keep pace with a long-drawn out battle. His seeping wounds told enough on that. _He can't fight two of us at once, you distract him and I'll get the berries away from him. _He liked the idea of eating a health restoring Oran berry.

_Can't fight two of us at once? What did the 'surf' attack do?_ Rain spat. _But it's a better idea than what I have. Come on, let's get him!_

Frost and Rain charged together at Cancer, but he was ready for them. He took a few steps back and called upon his psychic energy. Without holding back, he targeted the Riolu and lifted the dog-like Pokémon high in the air.

Frost yelped at the top of his lungs as the full power of psychic was unleashed. He fainted before he touched the ground. Rin returned him hastily. Her teammate focused on his disobedient Pokémon and hoped for the best.

Rain flinched at seeing Frost being defeated, but continued to race forward. Her claws glowed white as she prepared a 'slash' attack. She brought her claws slicing across Cancer's belly, but she hardly broke his skin. Slowbros had very thick skin, even when facing a Zangoose's claws.

Cancer looked completely calm, and then grimaced after a short delay for the pain reached his head.

_Fodder!_ She cursed and prepared another Thunder bolt. She had to end this quickly if there was any chance of her winning.

Cancer heard his trainer say 'surf', but knew that using a water move would heighten the power of the Zangoose's electric attack. He apologized mentally to his trainer and stomped forward the head-butt his opponent.

Rain hissed as the Slowbro came closer. Only a few more seconds and the attack would be ready to shoot at him!

**Wham!**

The audience became silent once again, craning their necks to see the outcome.

Rain had received the crushing head-butt to her own head. She tried to set off her thunder bolt, but only a measly spark jumped from her fur. Her head reeled in pain and she collapsed from a concussion. Cancer's skull was thick and Rain's defense was lacking. There was nothing more to it.

The Slowbro stepped back, the sole Pokémon left standing. _Tthhhhaaaaaattt wwwassssss ffffuuunnnnnnn. _He dragged his voice.

...

Kasmir arrived first on the scene. He gulped and admitted that this was no happy bonfire. The newly renovated gym Byron (the steel-type gym leader) had talked of so highly was being rioted on. A crowd of angry, shouting people were throwing roman candles through the windows and cheering at the explosions and fire enveloping the building.

The Mewtwo turned back and held up his hands to the two humans. "Don't come any closer, they might try to attack Byron!" he warned them.

"What the heck is going on? This thing might happen in Kanto, but Sinnoh?" She glared.

"I'll find out." Kasmir whipped around and ran to the crowd.

The angry rioters yelled and threw more explosives into the windows. Kasmir ducked as the loud booms and shards of glass flew from the explosion. He didn't have to ask one of the people what was going on; some locals were already doing that.

"What are you doing to Byron's gym?" an angry, motherly woman pointed at one of the hoodlums.

"Haven't you seen on the news, lady?" the man growled back. "If you knew your current events, you'd join us even."

"What is going on?" another local, perhaps the woman's husband, asked.

"Idiots, do you really not know?" the angry rioter yelled. "Rozeboom's been killed by a Bastiodon. Who the hell has a fossil Pokémon besides this dirt-bag?" he pointed his thumb at the building. "We don't know why the bastard did it, but we are here to tell him that we won't stand for this slaughter!"

Kasmir frowned, his heart pounding. Who was Rozeboom again? That name was so distinct, how could he not know? He jumped and ran back to where Corinne and Byron were waiting. He panted with fear. "Bad news, really, really bad news!"

"What?" 'Raquaza' and Byron asked at the same time.

Kasmir fought to control his heart's rapid beating. "They are destroying the gym because they think your Pokémon killed a Rozeboom person. Who…?" he left off as the answer came to his mind.

All three of them gulped and whispered. "Andrew Rozeboom… President of Sinnoh…"


	28. Chapter 28, Raquaza's Captains

**A/N: This chapter took a while, but now here are the captains and the reactions to the Sinnoh President's death. There are also some religious themes in this chapter and in the following ones, just a heads up. Thanks for reading.**

**Chapter 28**

Diego/'Garchomp' clapped appreciatively for the fascinating double battle the rookies had just finished. He grinned sadly as he remembered running around Sinnoh twenty or so years ago with Milo the geek-boy and Kyle the Lugia rider. The man missed his Garchomp who had died a while back.

The captain watched as the four rookies got back to their seats in the slightly hovering stands. The boy Jaylon received praise from Hiku's family, as well from the Wicklow scientists. They supported him well despite the fact that he had lost. Rin seemed uncomfortable and out of place, and ended up just standing by Hiku and smiling along with the conversation.

Vekra looked overjoyed at her victory and thanked Caprico heartily for the help. Caprico was still emotionless, but he responded well to the victory. The blue haired boy had been Diego's charge until he and his Pokémon became strong enough to fend for themselves. Diego saw now that the two Pokémon that were given him (Leafeon and Slowbro) had received excellent training. Maybe Caprico was ready to go on a mission if Raquaza so chose.

Diego knew that Corinne and Hianna had joined forces and had taken up the identity of 'Raquaza'. In fact, he was the first captain and had launched the fad of giving captains Pokémon nicknames. He had claimed the name 'Garchomp' as his own in honor of Draco the Garchomp.

The man in Garchomp cosplay sighed and glanced at the other captains in the stands. They obviously didn't have anything better to do than watch the rookie fight. There was 'Flygon', 'Kingdra', and 'Salamence' – who had fought earlier. 'Latios' and 'Dragonite' were yet to be seen in the stands.

Diego jumped as a being materialized beside him. The brown haired man sighed and asked, "What is it now, Kasmir? It isn't like you teleport in front of all these people…"

Kasmir looked like he was seeing a master ball held out to capture him, in other words: terrified. "Diego! You have to gather up all the captains. It's an emergency meeting and Cor- erh, 'Raquaza' can't say it because she's already here…" the Mewtwo pointed to Hianna sitting in the stands.

"What is it?" Diego asked again. "What's gotten you so worked up?"

Kasmir opened his mouth, but closed it. Then he gave in and said quickly, "I can't say. We just ran into some trouble in Canalave… Just call the captains to the secret meeting hall. It's urgent, Diego!"

"Okay, okay," Diego tried to calm the near hyperventilating Pokémon.

"Thanks." He nodded and sighed in relief. "I've been teleporting too much today; I'm just going to walk to the meeting room." He got up and walked down the steps of the bleachers. Only a trained eye would see that Kasmir barely touched the ground with his feet.

Diego grumbled, but felt Kasmir's fear reflected in his own mind. He had teamed up with the Mewtwo before, and not to be taken lightly. The man stood up and made his way to the three captains in the bleachers already. "Hey, 'Flygon', 'Salamence', and 'Kingdra', we've got a secret meeting to go to."

The man called 'Salamence' rolled his eyes. "Seriously? All we do nowadays is have meetings. I'm sick of them!" he was originally from Sinnoh, and he was a very battle-oriented trainer. In fact, the Pokémon 'Salamence' used in today's match were his secondary team. Even though they were second string, he trained Pokémon very well, harshly at times. His temper was renown to the other captains.

'Flygon' was from Hoenn and her specialty was undercover missions. Only she was exempt from the cosplay rule. She had a Flygon outfit, but she barely wore it, and certainly not on missions. She had been on several dangerous missions to Kanto and had gotten out scotch-free each time. She could change her voice to different accents and tone and could keep character expertly. She was quite alluring to the eye as well. 'Flygon' felt inclined to agree with 'Salamence' this time. "We've been doing nothing productive; I don't think meetings will make it any better."

'Kingdra' was the quietest of the bunch. He loyally wore his Kingdra cosplay to cover his scrawny body and haphazard black hair. He was from Kanto originally, and was a collector of sorts. He was in charge of the stores of Pokémon kept in the base. He nodded, but Diego couldn't tell if he was agreeing with his fellow captains or he was agreeing to the meeting.

'Garchomp' grumbled to himself. He knew that his other captains didn't respect him all that much because he was a friend of 'Raquaza'. They figured he got more attention and preference from the leader. "Something bad has happened in Sinnoh of all places. Kasmir requests an emergency meeting."

"To hell with that stupid… thing!" 'Salamence' waved his hand in the air. He suspected that Kasmir wasn't human, but wasn't sure what else he could be. 'Salamence's true name was Kaito Becker, and Kaito didn't like being called by a Pokémon name. "I say we go into Kanto and kidnap 'Latias' back instead of sitting on our hands."

'Raquaza' walked down the group of arguing captains and asked in her level voice, "What's troubling you?"

'Flygon' answered before Diego could. "Kasmir has called an emergency meeting, my lady. We are merely disagreeing that it is necessary."

The blonde woman with a green helmet replied evenly, "Why is this a debate? We all trust Kasmir; we should see what the trouble is."

Diego wondered if the other captains suspected the 'Raquaza' was actually two people, because no matter what they did, Hianna still acted in her distinct way contrary to Corinne. This was Hianna even though Diego couldn't see her face.

'Salamence'/Kaito snorted in disgust. "I knew that you would go along with your favorite captain." He mumbled accusingly.

Corinne would have assured him that this was not the case, but Hianna simply ignored him. 'Raquaza' made her way down the bleachers and went out the exit without a second look.

Diego glanced back to the ground and saw the two newest captains; Caprico and Vekra. Should they come, or was it best to leave them out? He decided against. The man in Garchomp cosplay stomped down the metal bleachers and followed 'Raquaza' out. He heard the crowd cheer as a new trainer pair came out to show off their teams. Diego didn't really care about the turnout; he didn't know either of the trainers.

In the time between when the Hoenn rookies were first recruited and the present, the numbers of this group had risen from the exiles from Kanto and adventure seekers. Diego hardly knew any of them, and had a bad feeling that one of these unnamed people could be leaking out secrets to this trainer snatcher person or group. But there were many problems with that thought. One, the trainers didn't know much about the captains and their plans, so it would be hard to leak important information; Two, there wasn't a clear antagonist, so it was exceedingly difficult to narrow down traitorous interactions.

But the man in Garchomp attire couldn't believe that any of the captains could be snitches either. Caprico/'Gible' was new and couldn't leak anything valuable, and why would he rat on his own sister? Vekra/'Dieno' was newer still. Diego himself wasn't informing any trainer snatchers about plans, and DJ/'Latios' couldn't have let Uchiha/'Latias' down. _That left Brian/'Dragonite', Kaito/'Salamence', Atri/'Kingdra', and Nicole/'Flygon'. Brian was far too benign, Kaito was hot-tempered, Atri was too quiet, and Nicole…_ Diego paused, thinking about her trips to Kanto… it was a wild guess and Diego hated thinking it, but Nicole/'Flygon' was a bit more sketchy.

He stopped thinking about this as he entered the meeting room. 'Raquaza' entered into a side door to speak with whoever was in there alone. Diego sat down and waited patiently.

After a minute or so, Kaito, Nicole, and Atri entered the room. Kaito grumbled angrily and took out a Pokéball. He called out his smallest and most behaved Pokémon, a female Pikachu. The yellow mouse Pokémon squeaked and jumped into Kaito's lap. Kaito usually called out his Pokémon only when he was bored and didn't want to talk with anyone else.

Nicole/'Flygon' sprawled out on the couch and sank into a light afternoon nap.

Atri Tems/'Kingdra' sat down by Diego and eyed him in a strange way, as if he wanted to say something but didn't want to break his mold of being the quiet one.

Diego decided to ask the man from Kanto what was up. "Hey, Atri, something bothering you?"

The man in the blue Kingdra suit nodded and whispered, "It seems odd that Kasmir would be calling a gathering isn't it? What's happened do you think?" he narrowed his eyes and whispered again, "Only a captain or 'Raquaza' herself should call us together."

Diego was full of questions himself and had very few answers for the scrawny man. "Kasmir, me, Milo Bertram, and 'Raquaza' all knew each other during the Lugia Rider times, we are a bit closer, that's all."

'Kingdra' nodded and stopped talking.

Diego didn't really like Atri/'Kingdra' all that much, 'Garchomp' liked people that talked and had more of an outgoing personality. Speaking of which, 'Latios' and 'Dragonite' walked through the door at that very moment.

'Latios'/DJ was far more outgoing, but lately he had been in a terrible mood understandably for his girlfriend 'Latias'/Uchiha. The man in white and blue cosplay sighed and sat down on Diego's other side. "This had better not be something bad about Uchiha…" he mumbled quietly.

Brian/'Dragonite' was a kindly man in his fifties. He was 'Latios's grandfather and was young for being a twenty year-old's grandfather. The reason behind that was the Brian's daughter had had DJ when she was still a minor and had given up young DJ. Brian had then cared for DJ and he had taken DJ into this organization for adventure and to accompany him in other ways besides home life. The two were very close for relatives. Brian himself was a paternal person who extended his care and protection to any that accepted it, including the captains. He was sort of the father to them all.

Diego patted 'Latios' on the back for comfort. "Don't you worry; Uchiha can take care of herself."

"Yeah, she can, can't she?" DJ admitted. "It's just that I miss her so much… The moment I find out who snatched her and where she's being held, I'll run out the door before 'Raquaza' can say 'no'!" the man clenched his fists in anger.

"You can't be thinking that you can stand up against some sort of foe that captured Uchiha without back-up." Kaito/'Salamence' huffed and rolled his eyes. "When we find out where she is, I'll come along. I need to get out and take on this hidden evil. I'm the strongest trainer here."

Diego was slightly amazed that Kaito wanted to help 'Latios'. And it was a pretty well-known fact that Kaito was in fact the strongest trainer of the group. His team of seven Pokémon were unbeatable. "I will come too, DJ." Diego nodded and added his support.

Brian/'Dragonite' nodded, but didn't verbalize anything.

Raquaza came back into the room, followed by a person they all knew but could hardly believe was there: Byron from Canalave; the steel-type gym leader of Sinnoh. Excited and nervous whispers rose up at the sight of the grizzly man in a cape.

"Kasmir and Byron have informed me of a terrible happening." Raquaza said icily. She was cutting right to the point, which meant this was a serious matter. "The news confirms it… the President of Sinnoh (Andrew Rozeboom) has been killed by a rampaging Pokémon."

"What?"

"That can't be!"

"That can't happen in Sinnoh!"

"How?"

Confused voices cried out at the same time. Diego felt his heart sink in fear and sadness. Andrew Rozeboom had been the vice president when he was a trainer in Sinnoh and Diego still felt loyal to his home region. This was a terrible loss for Sinnoh.

'Raquaza' held up her hand quickly and stiffly to command silence. "But there is much to be discovered about this death. Many networks are guessing different Pokémon as culprits. Byron here was accused of murder because the people in Canalave thought it was a Bastiodon. But no one knows yet. There were no witnesses." She said coldly. She would have been scowling if Diego could see the entirety of her face.

"Come on, another death?" 'Salamence' complained. The Pikachu on his lap tensed with her owner. "Even if he's a President, why does this involve us? We can protect everything you know!"

"Because, Kaito Becker," 'Raquaza' replied angrily, "Andrew Rozeboom was the only president in the president's conference that agreed with us. With him gone, Pokémon poaching will be submitted to the legislations and possibly passed. His death will make any _supporters of us_ look like insensitive people that care nothing about the mauling of the Sinnoh President!" She clenched his fists and looked ready to snap in anger.

Diego was amazed that she used Kaito's real name. She always insisted on the Pokémon nick-names.

'Salamence'/Kaito was surprised as well and shut his mouth quickly.

Hianna clenched her teeth in frustration. "But we can't give up yet. We are still going to fight and show that Pokémon trainers can heal the world. Byron here has fled his gym and home from a mob. I suggest that we gather up as many gym leaders that we can and bring them here. We must do this with the upmost secrecy, understand? The gym leaders are well known. I didn't want them here in the first place, but alone, they will be driven out.

"'Kingdra', 'Flygon', you two are best suited for this. You will go to Hoenn and Sinnoh and round up the gym leaders." She turned to Diego and said, "'Dragonite' and 'Garchomp', I want you to find a TV station or radio tower and try your best to promote our cause and be in the public eye. Stay out of Kanto and Johto." 'Raquaza' turned her gaze to the last two captains, 'Latios' and 'Salamence'. "'Latios' will stay here with the rookies and oversee their training. 'Salamence' will take Caprico/'Gible' to fight Pokémon herds in Johto. You know the drill."

'Latios' groaned at his assignment.

'Salamence' was hesitant to talk back to 'Raquaza' for a moment, but asked, "The kid is ready for that kind of task?"

"Did you pay attention to Caprico's battle earlier today? He's ready to work with you." She replied with a slight edge to her voice.

Diego didn't really want to go and be in the public eye, and yet, it was what he had wanted when he was traveling with a famous Lugia rider. He accepted his mission with a nod.

….

'Raquaza' excused the captains to go about their duties. She went back into the side room with Byron following her. Inside the other room was Corinne Martin and Kasmir, worry creasing their faces.

"Are you ok, 'Raquaza'? You kind of lost your cool back there…" the blonde lady said gently.

Hianna whipped off her helmet, showing her scowl. "I'm fine, I just want the captains to know the situation." She grumbled as she set the helmet on a counter.

Byron didn't say anything. He felt like he was out of place here.

Corinne noticed that and offered to take him to the trainer's quarters. Hianna shook her head and directed Kasmir to show the gym leader out.

The Mewtwo sighed and pointed the gym leader out the door. He followed after the gruff-looking man and closed the door behind him.

Corinne grimaced at Hianna. "You think it's that bad?" she said quietly.

"I know it is. And I don't even think that Rozeboom was killed by a Pokémon. I think that whoever is snatching trainers isn't afraid to knock off someone who's in his way."

"You can't be serious!" Corinne exclaimed. "How can you think that?"

"Because rampaging Pokémon don't happen in Sinnoh and Rozeboom's stance on the trainer situation was obvious. And no witnesses around to see a President, much less protect him? Where was the secret service? This has foul play written all over it." Hianna glared daggers at her 'Raquaza' counterpart.

Kasmir raced back in the room and closed the door.

"What are you doing back here?" Hianna demanded, voice rising in anger.

"I need to know what you two think about this turn of events. I feel bad when I just read your thoughts instead of asking…" he admitted quickly.

Corinne seemed comfortable with him in the small, sound-proof room. Hianna let the Mewtwo be, even though it was annoying to explain her thoughts all over again.

"Fine, as I was just saying, I think that there is foul play in this whole death. There isn't a way I can think of that would let the President go alone in a forest and get killed by a random rampaging Pokémon." Hianna spat, anger still boiling in her.

The blonde haired, purple-eyed guise nodded. "I figured as much. We Pokémon have instincts stronger than humans, and something was wrong about this whole thing from the start." He held his arms, as if shivering.

Corinne looked lost on how they could think that the President of Sinnoh had been murdered. She needed to think and ponder things before jumping to a conclusion.

"So now what? They have information on us from Uchiha/'Latias', they kill the president because he opposed them, and they snatch away trainers…" Hianna left off. She hated being on the lower end of the 'know'. This enemy knew a lot on them, but they were in the dark about this evil.

"There had to be someone that saw Rozeboom die, even if it was a Pokémon." Kasmir said thoughtfully. He was in a rare serious mood. "But it would be near impossible to find a Pokémon who saw it and bothered to remember…"

"Is that our only lead?" Hianna pounded the counter where her helmet lay. "Is it possible to find Uchiha?"

"I've tried to find her aura, but she's too far away to find." Kasmir's purple eyes narrowed to show his cat-like pupil. "And my search radius is about two miles wide."

"That's not very far…" Hianna rolled her eyes.

"You try searching for someone's life force by only using your mind!" Kasmir pouted. "It's hard for a psychic-type like me to look beyond two miles. I bet Milo's Lucarios can't even sense beyond 3,000 feet!"

"Fine, fine…" the elder of the 'Raquaza's grumbled back. "Then we can say that she's not at the Indigo Plateau. Do we have any other leads? Any identification on the men who tried to snatch and kill Hiku?"

"Nothing is what I've heard. A few medical scientists went back to Hoenn to investigate the body. It was left there when Hiku's family was brought here." The Mewtwo paused and glared. "That man… before he died he said that trainers were forfeiting their dignity by calling Pokémon equals… What a strange way of thinking…"

"Strange because you are a Pokémon." The blonde woman snapped.

Corinne sat back in a chair, thinking it all through. _All these clues had to lead somewhere…_

"Yeah, you keep on bringing that up." Kasmir's anger flared. "Is it because that you think Pokémon can't think or solve problems? Are Pokémon inferior to you?"

"You just bug me, that is all. You are kind of like a Pokémon style cross-dresser and it makes me uncomfortable."

"I'm MALE!"

"Not that, you are 'dressed' as a human." She glared. "And according to the way God and his angels arranged the earth, I say that Pokémon _are_ inferior. Man is the crown of creation, and he was given dominion over the earth, to tend and care for it."

"There we are," Corinne jumped up from her thinking, "these people we are fighting can be considered radicals of this philosophy!"

Kasmir and Hianna ignored Corinne and glared each other down.

Kasmir broke the tense silence by admitting softly. "You are right; humans are in a higher order than Pokémon… That's why I pretend to be one…" he stepped back and lowered his eyes, showing he was done fighting.

Hianna wanted to add something about clones to the Mewtwo, but didn't want to after he had backed down. _Were clones in a different order of life from natural-born Pokémon?_ She pushed the thought out of her head. "Ok, now that that is settled, what have we to show for it?" she grumbled.

"This person is a radical person…" Corinne put in. "He or she probably thinks killing trainers is making the world better… maybe even seeing Pokémon trainers as a race to massacre."

"At least we have some idea on motives, but can we gather anything else?" Hianna sat down and stared at the wall.

"Not until we can figure out where Uchiha is and how Rozeboom died…" Kasmir said quietly. "We still have the spy to worry about. I can't find anyone I can accuse yet… but if we can find the spy or spies in our midst, they could tell us about their informants…"

"Then we can only wait and gather facts…" Hianna curled and uncurled her fist. Her anger was simmering down now. "Okay, before 'Kingdra' goes off to get the gym leaders, I want a sheet of paper showing the records of all the Pokémon we have in storage and the trainer's inventory."


	29. Chapter 29, Lunch Chats

**Chapter 29**

Hiku smiled at her friends. Even though the battle Jaylon had just fought ended in Vekra's favor, she still congratulated him, as well as Vekra. All of the rookies including her were sitting in the meager cafeteria. Hiku's parents were sitting at another nearby table, as were Jaylon's scientist parents.

Hiku smiled in turn to each one of them. Vekra, who was quite cocky at winning even though _her _Pokémon had fainted, was chatting away at the fantastic fight. Caprico, who really won the fight, was sitting quietly, but was smiling a tad. Perhaps the company of the other rookies was making the blue haired boy warm up. Jaylon was listening to Vekra's story and adjusting it to his view when he thought he was being made fun of. The brown-haired boy still didn't like Vekra all that much, but what could you do? Rin sat like Caprico, listening to the conversation and smiling. Hiku had only known her from over the phone, so it was nice to see her in person.

Hiku herself had been allowed by the medic to walk around today and eat solid foods instead of getting nutrition from IVs. She still had an oxygen tank and felt frail and unable to walk very far, but it was worth it to be out of bed.

"I have to say, I didn't expect your Zangoose to wake up before the Riolu was finished." Vekra said degradingly.

"I don't know of any Pokémon that could sleep through an explosion like that. And then Rain sneak-attacked the Slowbro… that was so cool! She has some fighting skills. Sometimes I think she fights better when she isn't listening to me." Jaylon doted on his Zangoose, which was still inside her Pokéball.

"Frost actually fought, I was happy." Rin said quietly to add to the conversation. "Though I haven't won a single match so far, and that's a bit depressing."

"And Caprico's won twice in a row, huh?" Jaylon asked the table. He faced the blue-haired boy and raised his eyebrows. "You are a really good trainer. How can you be better than me when you are about five years younger than me?"

Caprico shrugged, showing his modesty.

Hiku glanced around the cafeteria. "Do you know where Kasmir is? He's a good trainer too. He helped Tamaki grow into a non-scary Pokémon."

Jaylon and Vekra exchanged strange looks to each other, as if there was something wrong with what she said. Caprico and Rin glanced around and shrugged.

Hiku didn't know what was wrong with her Hoenn teammates, but didn't ask. If she did, she might feel really embarrassed. "Did you guys see 'Salamence' battling before you? He's an amazing trainer. Almost every time he used only one attack to knock out the other opponent. Or, his Pokémon used one attack, not 'Salamence' himself." She scratched her head timidly.

"'Garchomp' fights pretty well, he taught me a lot about Pokémon fights." Caprico spoke up for the first time in the café.

"Yeah, I guess he does…" Jaylon muttered. "Hey, any of you guys know about this Lugia rider? Kasmir, 'Garchomp', Milo, and 'Raquaza' seemed to be involved with it."

Rin knew the answer. "I thought I already told you guys, but the Lugia Rider was a hero of Sinnoh. He defeated the human-made Pokémon called Razzen, but he died when the fight was over." She paused and her eyes widened. "Wait, you said 'RAQUAZA' was in the Lugia Rider events?"

Jaylon nodded. "Kasmir said that she was the Lugia Rider's sister."

Rin was astounded. "That's so awesome! But which sister could she be, Kyle Martin the Lugia Rider had several sisters…"

"I don't want to know who 'Raquaza' is, I want to know… never mind…" Jaylon sighed. "Hey, do you guys remember getting any food?"

"No we just sat down and started talking." Hiku said.

"I'm hungry, I'll go get something from the Café." He stood up and smiled at his raven-haired friend. "I'll get something for you if you want." He smiled so charmingly that Hiku couldn't help but blush.

"Yes please, that's so nice of you. A sandwich is fine." She grinned, blushing. The blush seemed to make her look healthier from her pale complexion. Hiku tried to cover up her fluttering heart by playing with her hair, careful not to accidentally pull on the oxygen tubes going into her nose.

Vekra tucked her blonde hair behind her ear and looked slightly ticked, as if she had wanted to try to make it up to Hiku for deserting the original Hoenn team. "Fine, I'll get something too."

"Don't forget the Pokémon too." Caprico said evenly. He looked at his twin Pokémon in their Pokéballs and smiled. "But then again, this place is too small to take all them out. We should feed them in a training room after we are done eating." Again, his talking was dull but more frequent. The other rookies smiled inwardly at his growing openness.

"You guys can get some food, I'll keep Hiku company until you get back." The short-blonde haired girl waved the others off. Rin didn't want to let Hiku to sit all alone.

"Ok," Vekra, Caprico, and Jaylon said as they got up and went to the small counter to order some food.

Rin looked like she wanted to ask something, but couldn't bring herself to say it. She smiled nervously and asked, "So, you three Hoenn people were a team?"

"Sorta, Vekra left to go on her own not long after we met. But Jaylon and I have been a team for a while…" Hiku answered.

"Do you… like Jaylon?" Rin asked, blushing a little herself.

"Me? I uh…" Hiku looked flustered and she tried to think of what to say back to that. She certainly liked him as a friend. He had helped her out so much during their little adventure to Fallabor. "He's a good friend…" she stammered. But he had done so much for her. He had chased after the evil men who had kidnapped her, he had helped her when she had fainted at the gory scene in Fallabor, and he had even convinced her to keep Tamaki the Shroomish. What if he liked her?

Rin nodded, accepting the answer. "He's a strange but funny guy. But I'm not interested in him relationally. I just wanted to know if you were." She shrugged, as if happy to get the subject done and over with.

The two girls smiled once more just as the said person sat down at the table again. Jaylon gave Hiku a turkey sandwich in a plastic box. "Here you go, I hope you like turkey. That was the only kind they had." The brown haired boy with the red bandana around his head said. He had for himself a burger in a steamy plastic box.

Hiku nodded and thanked him. "Thanks for that, Jaylon. I love turkey." She opened the plastic box and took a little bite of the bread. She was still unused to the oxygen tubes and didn't want to somehow clog them up with sandwich.

Rin smiled and went to get her lunch.

Vekra and Caprico also returned to the table with food of their own. The blonde rookie with trendy clothes had a slice of cheese pizza in a steamy plastic box, and Caprico had a small pasta dish. Vekra scoffed at the single slice of pizza. "Seriously, they charge a pretty penny for a single slice of pizza? I thought something from Raquaza would be a little more impressive."

"Maybe all her funds are going to research and facilities rather than food." The blue haired boy shrugged and bit a forkful of pasta.

Rin, returning with a sandwich as well, nodded with the conversation. "If 'Raquaza' is a Martin, then she's using her money well. The Martins are millionaires in Sinnoh, but they spend their money wisely."

"Wisely or cheaply?" Vekra mumbled and ate her pizza slice.

The rest of lunch went by with some more small talk and laughter. The five rookie trainers were finding that they got along pretty well together (excluding Jaylon and Vekra). Hiku was glad that they all were together. It felt better to be in the company of several trainers than a single other trainer.

Once they were done eating, the five rookies went to the nearest training room to let their Pokémon eat. 20 Pokémon were released and most of them set to their kibble-like food happily. Vekra's Metang and Caprico's Slowbro didn't touch the plates of kibble. Cancer the Slowbro sat down instead and nibbled on one of the berries on his spikey tail. Metang didn't need any food.

The other Pokémon sat in their own little groups, eating quickly. Rin's Sneasel and Buizel sat together, eating from the same bowl. Frost the Riolu was talking with Jaylon's Zangoose. The three Hoenn starters all greeted each other. The Twin Zangeese sat far away from the other Pokémon. Oan the Swallot was trying his hardest to eat his food close to Hiku's Kirlia. When Oan had eaten all his food, he sneaked a mouthful from Metang's plate. Tamaki the Breloom greeted Virgo the Leafeon with a wave of his white tail.

The trainers all laughed and smiled at their Pokémon.

The fun moments of watching the Pokémon ended as the man in Salamence cosplay walked into the training room. He had a female Pikachu on his head (you could tell by the tail that it was female). 'Salamence' walked up to the group of trainers and ridiculed them. "It was sure hard to find you rookies. I need to tell 'Gible' here his first mission. Granted, the mission won't be launched until tomorrow… but I digress." He huffed. The Pikachu on his head glanced at the happy mass of young Pokémon. She shook her lightning-shaped tail and snubbed them.

Caprico stood up from the bleachers and tilted his head slightly. "And what is the mission?"

"You and I will go out to Johto and fight off some wild Pokémon. If we are lucky, we'll find some Pokémon we don't have yet and you can capture your first Pokémon." Salamence huffed. "We'll be starting early in the morning, so you'll want to get to bed earlier than normal." With that, he turned on his heels and marched back out.

Vekra frowned. She was a captain in training too, didn't she get a mission? "What do I get to do?" she asked.

The haughty man smirked at her, "You, 'Dieno', are going to train with 'Latios' along with the other rookies." He slammed the door as he exited.

"'Dieno'? What kind of Pokémon nickname is that?" Jaylon leered.

Rin pulled a large book from her bag and flipped through the pages until she found what she was looking for. "Deino is a Unova Pokémon. I just got the Unova handbook… anyways; Dieno is a dark/dragon-type Pokémon."

Vekra glanced at the page that showed a little blue Apatosaurus-type Pokémon with black fur covering its eyes and neck. Vekra didn't entirely like the look of it, but the dark/dragon type was a strange combo and could be pretty strong. She rolled her eyes at the thought that the younger captain would go on a mission before her.

Hiku tried to soothe Vekra's sour emotions. "It's ok, Vekra, I'm sure they will give you a mission soon. You are a good trainer."

"Thanks, Hiku…" the other Hoenn girl sighed.

…

'Raquaza' and Kingdra walked together to the main computer, the place where all the Pokémon stored in Lanette's storage system could be accessed. 'Kingdra'/ Atri was in charge of cataloging all of the Pokémon owned by their group and all the employed trainers. It was a harder task than you would think, seeing as Pokémon were traded and new ones captured. But collecting was Atri's hobby.

The scrawny man went up to the main screen and printed out a long list of Pokémon species names. He handed the list to Raquaza without a word.

"So which Pokémon do we not have?" the lady in green asked, looking up from the long list.

"Species wise, we are only missing a few Pokémon excluding legendary Pokémon. In Pokémon, we have far less. Like a Venasaur would count for its entire stages species wise, but if we counted individuals, we'd only have a Venasuar out of a Bulbasaur and Ivysuar.…" Atri explained in his quiet voice. "The species we do not have are on this list here." He coughed at the large amount of talking he was doing. He printed out another list and gave this to 'Raquaza' as well. "Don't you remember me telling you this earlier?"

Hianna mentally grimaced. He had told Corinne before, but not her. "Yes, I'm sorry, I'm feeling a little forgetful." She covered for her ignorance. The blonde woman took the list and scanned it. "Very well, this is good. I'll send a copy to 'Salamence' for his rampage fight."

"Why do you want every Pokémon… out of curiosity, my lady?" Atri whispered and arched an eyebrow.

"Collecting…" she answered hesitantly. She couldn't say out loud that she was gathering up Pokémon to make sure that if the Pokémon trainers had to flee, then they would still have a large stock of Pokémon to give to future trainer generations.

Atri/'Kingdra' shrugged and headed to his quarters to pack for the trip of gathering up the gym leaders. He stopped and thought out loud, "Do you think that Kasmir might be able to help in this mission of bringing gym leaders here? He is a Mewtwo after all…" he whispered.

Hianna was slightly taken aback that he knew of Kasmir. But then again, it was hard for the Pokémon to keep his mouth shut and identity hidden. "I'm afraid his help is needed here, but that is a good idea."

"Very well…" Atri said in a barely audible voice and walked away.

Hianna shrugged and scanned over the list of Pokémon not captured yet in the database. She nodded to herself and went to make a copy of it.

…

"Rio!" Frost cried out angrily in the training room. The rookie trainers jumped and watched to see what was going on.

"Lu-lu Rio Riolu!" the blue jackal-like Pokémon growled and pointed at Zuni the Grovyle. He was angry about something, perhaps sore from losing to Zuni and Cancer.

"Vyle gro-gro." The gecko Pokémon shrugged and went back to socializing with the other Pokémon.

Frost the Riolu didn't like being ignored. He ran up to Zuni and pushed him. "Lu! Rio-rio Riolu!" he snarled.

Zuni retaliated and pushed the smaller Pokémon back. "Grovyle gro gro."

Other Pokémon began to back away from the two fighting male Pokémon. Taynee the Sneasel scampered away the quickest. The Pokémon trainers glanced at each other.

Rin made an uneasy face. "Vekra, should I call Frost back into his Pokéball?"

"If they fight, your Riolu will lose, so I don't care." Vekra said dismissively.

"What? Frost is stronger than that. Oh, I'm sorry." She apologized for her outburst. "But I don't want the Pokémon to fight each other just because Frost is sour that he lost." She sighed and watched her irate Pokémon. "He always seems angry."

The Pokémon now had made a ring in which the two Pokémon could fight in. Rin's Buizel was actually cheering for a fight. However, most other Pokémon didn't care or were worried that their trainers would be upset with them.

Rain the Zangoose seemed angry along with the Riolu, but didn't join in the fight.

The gecko and jackal Pokémon continued to hurl insults at each other, getting ready for a fight. Cancer the Slowbro thought differently. The pink water/psychic Pokémon lumbered into the circle and came in between the two angry Pokémon.

"Ssssssllllllloooooooowwwwww." Cancer said, voice dragging. He reached to his spikey tail and took off the last Oran berries from the shell. He offered one impaled berry to Frost and one to Zuni. He blinked slowly, his mannerisms somehow soothing.

Zuni took the blue berry happily and ate it.

Frost glared at Cancer in hate. "Riolu Rio-Rio lululu!" he spat.

"." Cancer droned and handed the berry to the Riolu. The pink Pokémon smiled slowly, trying to be as friendly as possible. "Bbbrrrooooooo…"

Frost snarled but took the berry. He stomped back to the circle of Pokémon and pushed through to be by himself and his rage.

The rest of the Pokémon cheered slightly for the fight being broken up, except for Lee the Buizel. The orange water type Pokémon had wanted to see some action, but was disappointed.

"Your Slowbro is really dull." Vekra huffed. "Even though he was good in the double battle, he's stupid. He thinks berries can solve everything."

Caprico went back to the bleachers and shook his head. "No, Cancer is pretty smart. He has a supply of berries in case he gets hurt or paralyzed, or even poisoned. And he won the fight because he didn't listen to me." The blue haired boy nodded. "I told him to use 'surf', but that would have lost the battle. If the Zangoose could have used thunderbolt in the surf attack, Cancer would have fainted. But he used head-butt and won the match. He's really smart." Caprico stood up and walked over to his Slowbro. He reached into his pack and gave Cancer a handful of berries. The pink Pokémon took them gratefully and stuck each one on the shell points on his tail.

"I never really think of Slowpokes or Slowbros to be smart, but they are psychic type, right?" Rin shrugged.

Hiku nodded along with the others. She wondered if (when she recovered) she would ever be able to Hoenn again, or even a herd of Slowpokes and Slowbros in Kanto or Johto. What did the world look like outside of this base? She couldn't wait to get better.

**Wow, I'm going to be coming up to thirty chapters! Just wondering, should I make a trilogy of this or continue writing the story in 'Fallen Trainers'? Please PM or review to tell me what you think.**


	30. Chapter 30, Ransom

**Chapter 30**

Four days passed in Raquaza's Mt. Silver base. The rookies got into the swing of things, they ate all of their meals in the small café, they got to practice and train with each other and 'Latios', and Caprico even got a taste of a captain's mission. After the Pokémon rampage fight, he seemed more talkative with his friends, but very contemplative about the ferocity of some wild Pokémon. 'Salamence' and 'Latios' were the only captains seen around base for a while, though the rookies didn't know why. Raquaza continued in her normal duties, watching the trainers and rookies train and operating her base.

Hiku was recovering by the day, and soon her cheeks were flushed with color instead of their former pale shade. Her oxygen tank was removed and she was only a few steps away from full recovery. All that was left was to make sure she didn't strain herself with a Pokémon battle or too much exercise.

Despite the joy and bright hopes for the future in the Mt. Silver base, the world outside was in contrast. The news media swarmed over the death of Rozeboom and it was confirmed that a Pokémon was the killer, though which Pokémon was still to be determined. The Vice President of Sinnoh (Carter Stout) was sworn into office, and his first acts were to protect the people from the vicious Pokémon. This was all done in honor of the fallen president, but it was only making things worse. Sinnoh was losing trainers and the Pokémon became overconfident and violent. Sinnoh was no safer then Hoenn anymore.

Trainers seemed to be getting the message that they were not welcome, so many had fled the regions and took a boat to Unova, the only unaffected region known. However, the governments of all four regions began to screen the people boarding the boat and limited the number of trainers allowed per boat. Some in the media saw the trainer migration as a good thing, but others thought to stop it all together.

Surprising still was the support of the Kanto and Johto Presidents Walhoff and Hawkes. According to the popular news channels, they sent support and funds to help out the northern region of Sinnoh after the loss. The news reporters called these two presidents kind and caring. And yet, these two Presidents were at the same time rounding up trainers to be sent away, or so it was said. Furthermore, the opposition of the Pokémon poaching laws was decreasing. Whether this was in honor of Rozeboom or for some other reason, it wasn't talked on in the media.

More popular television shows showed bias against trainers and Pokémon as equals. This was a constant headache to both Raquaza's. Not only was it harder to figure out the instigator and draw up suspects, but their whole operation was being trash-talked. The small base at Mt. Silver was hard to find however, and for now they were safe from rioters.

Diego/'Garchomp' and Brian/'Dragonite' had obeyed 'Raquaza' and had found media to connect to. Diego had appeared a few times on the radio and on talk shows in Sinnoh. But his victories were only because of his association with the deceased Lugia Rider. Brain had ventured to Hoenn, but had had no luck in getting a spot in the media.

This day, trainer's families were being brought in to hide from suspicion. Several trainers that had joined Raquaza's force went out to gather up their family. One of these families was Jaylon's aunt and uncle. Jaylon had given his relatives a Poocheyna as a pet, and the presence of the little wolf Pokémon had begun to make them paranoid at being accused as trainers. Brain/'Dragonite' was bringing them over on his Pokémon.

Jaylon and the rest of the rookies had heard of this and had all joined together to welcome in the family. In the past few days of training, they had all become closer and called each other friends. Even Vekra and Jaylon found their fighting had calmed between them. They weren't best friends, but they could tolerate each other now. The five rookies stood outside the front entrance of the Mt. Silver base, waiting for the arrival.

"I guess I finally get to meet your Aunt and Uncle, huh, Jaylon?" Hiku smiled. She had her hair tied in a low ponytail today, and she was wearing he normal clothes; a button up blouse and a knee-length skirt with leggings underneath. Nano the Mudkip was perched on her shoulder, chirping at intervals for no apparent reason.

Rin nodded along with the question. She was wearing a fedora hat to cover her curly bangs, and she wore a graphic tee of swirling patterns, complemented by blue jeans.

Jaylon smiled at his group of rookie friends. "Yeah, it's been a while since I've seen them; at least it feels like it. Things have changed so much… I still can't believe that I found my parents again and that they are amazing scientists that work for 'Raquaza'…" he held his hands behind his neck in a relaxed posture. He still wore his red bandana around his head, but he was wearing a plain shirt today instead of a legendary Pokémon one.

Hiku put her finger to her mouth and said thoughtfully to the other Hoenner, "I'm about to meet Jaylon's uncle and I've met his parents and my family is here as well, but what about you, Vekra?"

The other blonde girl shrugged and rolled her eyes. "There's not all that much to my family…" She tried to wave off the subject. She was wearing a camisole and a see-through white shirt over top with booty shorts and costume jewelry to boot. Her long blonde hair was tied up in a bun near the top of her head.

"No really…" Hiku tried to persuade her. "Family is important. Do you have any siblings? What are your mom and dad like?"

Vekra was saved from answering by a loud Dragonite call. The rookies turned and saw a large yellow dragon with impossibly small wings flying closer, sending up gusts of air. The five rookies all called and waved to the arriving Dragonite.

The large dragon landed heavily on its feet, and then it crouched down to allow it passengers off. First off was a miniature Dragonite –Brian in Pokémon cosplay-, then following him was Jaylon's Uncle Jerry and Aunt Linda and the young cousins Ana and Mike.

Agent J smiled widely and ran to hug each of them in turn. They had pretty much raised him and he loved them. Uncle Jerry smiled and hugged the teenager back. Aunt Linda joined in the hug, surrounding the brown haired boy. Young Ana and Mike hugged Jaylon's waist. They all began talking at once and smiling at each other.

"I haven't seen you guys for a while, how was the ride over?" Jaylon asked.

"We've been fine, Ana loves Knight the Poocheyna so much. She insists on becoming an amazing trainer like her cousin." Uncle Jerry smiled and pointed to a dog cage holding the said Pokémon. It was around with a jumble of other bags, no doubt their belongings.

"That Dragonite is so big and awesome!" cried Mike, throwing his arms in the air. "I want it to be my starter Pokémon!"

"Yeah, the Dragonite was really cool and fast. The man who brought us over was really nice too." Ana chimed in. She hugged Jaylon again and said, "And Dad's right, I want to be a trainer like you, Agent J!"

Aunt Linda patted Jaylon's head and said, "We brought some of your stuff from the house. We still have a few things at home just in case this trainer outrage blows over."

Jaylon grimaced. The captains and Raquaza didn't see the future as having promise in it, but he supposed that it was better to hope instead of being gloomy, right? "Yeah…" he cleared his throat and pointed to the other rookies. "Hey, these are my friends. Hiku and Vekra are from Hoenn, Rin is from Sinnoh, and Caprico is from Johto."

Ana and Mike jumped up and happily waved to the group.

"My, your Pokémon journey has taken you places, huh?" Aunt Linda admitted to him.

"Yeah," He scratched his neck. Just wait until they met the people who live here. Kasmir, 'Raquaza', all the other captains, Milo, his parents… So many things that were not typical of a Pokémon journey had happened to him and his friends. He hated to think that he might be in the last generation of trainers.

Hiku walked forward and bowed respectfully. "It's a pleasure to meet Jaylon's aunt and uncle."

Introductions were made and 'Dragonite' and Uncle Jerry began unloading the packages from the dragon's back. The two men took the packages inside to be put in a free room for the family. Ana took Knight out of the dog carrier and let the little black wolf wander around and lick Jaylon's face.

Caprico petted the little black wolf with fascination, but perhaps it wasn't because of the Poocheyna, but that Ana was close to his own age.

The sky suddenly became filled with flapping noises. Jaylon and the rest of the rookies looked up and saw a huge flock of flying Pokémon descending to the base. They backed up to allow room for the arrivals.

The first Pokémon to land was an Aerodactyl, and riding on it was none other than Roxanne, the teacher/gym leader of Rustboro. Also riding with her was a blue haired man that looked all too happy to get off a flying Pokémon's back. This man was Brawley, a distant cousin to Jaylon himself.

Other Pokémon began landing. A Pelipper, a Skarmory, and a Swellow; all carrying passengers. All of the Hoenn Leaders were accounted for, with the exception of the impounded Watson. Winona had obviously lent some of her flying type Pokémon for other gym leaders to fly over on. Before confusion could set in at the arrival of these famous trainers that specialized in one type, Kasmir ran out and addressed the whole crowd.

"Welcome to Mt. Silver, esteemed Gym leaders." He said in a loud but welcoming voice. "Raquaza wishes to see you, come with me and return your Pokémon."

Aunt Linda stared at the group of Hoenners with surprise. "What's going on? Who's the blonde kid?" she pointed to Kasmir.

"Ah, the blonde kid is Kasmir, and he looks really young for being thirty… And I'm not sure what's going on, I'll ask Kasmir…" Jaylon shrugged and went up to the Mewtwo. "Hey, what's going on?"

Kasmir wasn't in a happy mood for some reason. His purple eyes showed the slight cat-like pupils. "The Gym Leaders of Hoenn and Sinnoh are being brought here for protection. Raquaza is going to address them of the situation."

Jaylon frowned. "What about the Kanto and Johto leaders?"

Kasmir scoffed. "They are either dead or have fled the region." He sighed and looked at the brown haired boy. "I'm sorry, things have been going downhill and I feel so powerless… Do you know how a Legendary Pokémon feels when it's powerless?" he shook his head.

Jaylon raised his eyebrows. "No, I've never thought that Legendary Pokémon _could _feel powerless."

Kasmir glanced at him, as if to make sure Jaylon wouldn't tell anyone else. "The legendary Pokémon are figuring out what to do about the humans right now. They may try to destroy Kanto and Johto for the sake of the Pokémon being killed there. If that happens, war will break out. But I hope that they will be talked out of it. Uxie is the being of Knowledge; surely he can't let that happen…"

Jaylon jumped in surprise.

"I've said enough already…" the Mewtwo sighed and waved to the gym leaders. "Ok, follow me." He said in a louder voice. He turned and went into the base, ushering the leaders.

Another round of Flying Pokémon had landed while Jaylon was talking with Kasmir. This group yielded the cast of Sinnoh gym leaders. The captains 'Flygon' and 'Kingdra' were trying to lead them inside as well. There was something strange about those two, like they were excited or worried about something.

Kingdra said in a barely audible voice, "You take the ransom to 'Raquaza'; I'll bring the Sinnoh Leaders into the auditorium."

The female captain nodded and raced inside.

_What was this about a ransom?_ Jaylon felt his curiosity burning him.

…

Flygon ran as fast as she could to find Raquaza. This was urgent news that needed to be told. She ran past the group of Hoenn gym leaders and Kasmir and made a beeline for the auditorium. 'Raquaza' had to be there!

The woman in green was not to be seen on the stage, but 'Flygon' knew that she usually waited behind the curtains until everyone was in. The red haired woman vaulted onto the stage and ran to the side rooms. Inside was a surprised looking Raquaza without her helmet. Nicole/'Flygon' was surprised to see how old Raquaza actually was. She had to be in mid-forties at least.

'Raquaza' hastily put on her helmet and said in an annoyed tone, "What do you want, 'Flygon'?"

She took a deep breath and related her story. "'Kingdra' and I were coming back from rounding up the Sinnoh gym leaders, and we have to fly over Kanto in order to get back here, and we saw 'Latias's real name painted on one of the buildings. So we flew down to investigate. There was a man waiting there, and he held out a letter to us. Before we could say anything, he ran to his helicopter and flew off. We tried to give pursuit, but gun fire went off…" She said breathlessly.

Raquaza's mouth fell open in shock. "We have a lead on 'Latias'?"

"Yes, but the building that had her name painted on the roof was demolished (it was scheduled to be demolished). Now we have is a ransom note telling where and when to find her. But it could be a trap…" the red haired woman handed the opened letter to 'Raquaza'.

The blonde woman in green took the note quickly and scanned the contents. "Very well, after I welcome the Gym leaders, I will have all of my captains meet on this. Is 'Garchomp' back yet?"

"No, he's still in Sinnoh, talking to the media. I saw him the other day on a talk show. Dragonite, Kingdra, Latios, Salamence, Dieno, and Gible are here though." 'Flygon' replied.

"Good. Tell them of the emergency meeting. Also inform Kasmir, he should see the meeting as well." 'Raquaza' said and scanned the ransom note again. "If we want to rescue Uchiha, then we need to send our strongest."

**A/N: So, maybe we will find out more about Vekra's family. Things are building up to the climax; I'm so excited to write this. Please review. **

**Can you tell who the spy is yet?**


	31. Chapter 31, Shaken 'Raquaza'

**Chapter 31**

Vekra was amazed at the number of gym leaders in one place. Seven Hoenn Gym Leaders and eight Sinnoh leaders. She didn't know whether to greet them respectfully or challenge them to a battle. After the days of training with the other rookies, she had found her unique training style that best fitted her and her Pokémon team. She felt confident enough to take on any gym leader at this point. They had gone into an auditorium and had a greeting or something from Raquaza. Vekra waited outside the door to catch a leader and challenge them, or at least meet them.

The rest of the rookies had taken to moving Jaylon's relative's stuff into an open room. Vekra had helped a little, but she didn't want to stick around for too long. Hiku, in her sweet way, might try to ask about Vekra's family again. Vekra didn't talk about her family much, she didn't want to. Her father was a businessman that had no time for her, and her mom had died a while back; just your typical angst past. Was else was there to say? She didn't have many friends back in Ever Grande or any siblings.

She groaned as she thought. Her trainer journey so far had not been as successful as she had wanted. She wanted to be busting criminals and dominating everyone with her team of Pokémon. But now she only had four Pokémon and still had trouble winning against other rookies. And becoming a captain didn't seem to be all that exciting. All Vekra got to do as a captain of Raquaza was listen to secret meetings.

"Hey, Vekra/'Dieno'." The man codenamed 'Salamence' said in a slightly sarcastic tone, "You don't have to guard the gym leaders; they can take care of themselves."

"But I wasn't-"

"Rather, you should be joining us captains for a secret meeting." Kaito continued, closing his eyes and sticking his nose up slightly.

Vekra growled silently. Not only did she have another pointless meeting to go to, but this captain was still treating her like a rookie. Actually, she thought that she and Kaito acted quite the same. They both had strong Pokémon and were a tad haughty about them, or at least Vekra liked to think so. "Why another meeting? What's it about?" she grumbled.

"Don't like the meetings either?" 'Salamence' smirked, "me neither, but this one's the big kahuna of all meetings."

Vekra didn't know exactly what he meant by 'kahuna', except that it meant it was important. "Ok, what is it?" she asked again.

"'Kingdra' and 'Flygon' came back with a ransom note for Uchiha. If that doesn't excite you, I'd say you're hopeless." Kaito sneered and sauntered off to the room where they had their meetings in.

She jumped at the news. The long lost Uchiha was found at last? Vekra still kept in mind that one of the captains could be a spy for the trainer killing force out there. She didn't know if Kaito was under suspicion, but he sure could get away with it, being as strong as he was. _Then again, Kaito wouldn't be the spy because he was a trainer himself. Could 'Flygon' be the spy? She and Kingdra found the ransom, how do I know that she didn't plan that meeting ahead of time?_ Vekra gulped and followed Kaito. She didn't like the fact that the meeting they were having could give the spy vital answers. Vekra decided to keep a close eye on 'Flygon' from now on.

The meeting room was in a buzz. 'Kingdra' looked overwhelmed and frightened by the flood of question asked him by the other captains. 'Flygon' was trying to answer as best as she could, but seemed to be hiding something. Or maybe that was just Vekra's paranoia.

"Look, calm down you guys!" Nicole/'Flygon' huffed. "I can't tell you more than I saw, ok?"

"But Uchiha…" 'Latios' pleaded. "Tell me where she will be. I said that once we got word of where she was I'd go off and get her back!"

Kingdra/Atri held up his hands and pleaded, "Please, once 'Raquaza' starts the meeting, we will help the best we can. Until then please calm down." His voice was still soft, unable to break the mold of quiet-speak. His helmet was off, showing his wild and scraggly black hair.

Flygon nodded along with Atri. "Back down you guys, ok?"

Dragonite sighed and sat down, acknowledging the truth in the other captain's words. Caprico didn't sit down; he was still there, eyes burning with fire. Vekra saw that he was very loyal to his sister. Though, Caprico was really young compared to Uchiha. _What were they, ten years apart?_

'Salamence' patted 'Latios' on the back. "Once we know the info, I'll go with you to get her back. I'm not forgetting my promise either."

"I don't need your help." DJ said back dismissively.

"If a letter was given to 'Flygon', then there's a high chance that her captors will want to capture us and get answers from us like they did from 'Latias'. Think, 'Latios'!" Kaito said sharply. "I know you love her, but think."

Vekra didn't know what to do, so she sat by Brian/'Dragonite' until 'Raquaza' got back from the Gym Leader speech. It didn't take long, the blonde woman in a green dress nearly ran into the room, holding the letter tightly to her chest. She had her helmet on, but her emotions were plainly readable.

"'Flygon'… please repeat the story on how you got this letter again…" She said, hands trembling slightly. It was so strange for their fearless leader to be shaken up so much.

The red haired woman nodded. "Ok, Atri and I flew to Sinnoh to bring the Gym leaders over to here, and we have to fly over Kanto to get there. Nothing happened on the way there, but on the way back, we spotted an old building ready to be demolished. On the roof, painted in bold red letters, was the name 'Uchiha'." 'Latios' gave a little wail at this. The red haired captain continued, "So, we flew down on our Pokémon to see what was going on. On the roof we saw this man in black and wearing shades. He gave us a letter and then quickly turned around and fled to his helicopter. Atri and I didn't know what he was doing, so we ran after him, but we ran away when he started firing on us. We took cover and opened the letter after the helicopter had flown away. The letter says where Uchiha is and when to come get her. It seems like there is some sort of deal or ransom required, but it doesn't say.

"Then the building started to shake, and we jumped on our flying Pokémon so we didn't get caught in the demolition. We flew here as fast as we could to deliver the message and wait for orders…" she paused and took a deep breath. "So, 'Raquaza', what are we going to do? We've got to get 'Latias' out."

'Raquaza' looked at the paper again. "Yes, we have to get Uchiha back. But this is most certainly a trap…"

"Just tell us the time and location and I'll go!" DJ jumped to his feet and clenched his fist in the air.

"What makes me wary though is the manner in which you got this letter. How did this man in black know that you were going to see the red paint?" Raquaza said gravely. Her excitement on finding Uchiha was suppressed and now she was trying to work things out before sending off people.

Flygon and Kingdra shrugged. Then the scraggly-haired man ventured, "Perhaps they saw us flying overhead on Pokémon and thought that we would come back the same way. And to most trainers, Uchiha is recognized. I wouldn't be surprised if other normal trainers are trying to break her out right now." he coughed again, his larynx not used to being used so much.

"But for my captains to find this note… perhaps the enemy knows more than we thought…" She left off and scanned the room, as if guessing that the spy had let on about this. "And this being in Kanto, can we confirm that the trainer snatcher/killer is living in Kanto?"

"Positive!" Kaito declared. "We should start checking all of the president's staff for sketchy pasts and mafia involvement." He was a person to get things done, and Vekra couldn't say she disagreed.

"Which city in Kanto did you find this man?" Raquaza asked.

"Celadon." They both answered.

Kaito and DJ both grimaced, as if far too impatient to be leaving and coming to the rescue for Uchiha.

'Raquaza' nodded slowly, adding up all of the facts. "So do you believe that our security has been forfeited?" she addressed Atri and Nicole.

"Like if they followed us?" 'Flygon' asked. "I doubt it, though they could have seen which direction we were going. They didn't follow us and I made sure that there was no sort of tracking device in the envelope."

Vekra sighed. This meeting was much more interesting, but 'Raquaza' seemed to be losing her edge. _She should send out a group to bring back Uchiha… then again, it was way too risky to do that. How a guy ended up giving a ransom note on top of a soon-to-be demolished building was just odd…_ She glanced around the room and saw that Kasmir had slipped in and was silently watching the captains. She frowned and the Mewtwo, but didn't say anything to break his concentration.

"Please, Raquaza, we need to bring Uchiha back; even if that involves risk! She may know who our enemy is. She has been held for a long time by this hidden enemy and can tell us more than we can hope to guess." Kaito/'Salamence' demanded. DJ hastily agreed.

"I don't want to send out captains only to have them not come back…" the lady in green said firmly.

"That's why I'll go. I'm the strongest trainer here!" Kaito retaliated.

Raquaza sighed and looked at the letter again, as if it was a nervous habit. "The note says that she can be found in Viridian City tomorrow. Do any of you captains know about Viridian City? Atri/'Kingdra'?"

The black haired man shook his head. "I lived in Kanto before coming here but I lived in Vermillion, not Viridian."

Flygon sighed and said, "I've been to Viridian City. It's not the best place I know… but I can still take you other captains there."

Vekra frowned_. Flygon didn't seem to want to go. Was this a further hint to say she was the spy?_

"So the team of captains going to Viridian will be 'Flygon', 'Salamence', and 'Latios'? That leaves 'Kingdra', 'Dragonite', and the newest captains to guard the base." She said, contemplating the security of the base.

"And me." Kasmir said quietly by Vekra. He looked contemplative, which was not normal. What's more, he seemed a little put out. This was strange because Vekra thought he was good friends with Raquaza. _Why was he acting differently? Was Latios true in saying that there could be two Raquazas?_

"Very well, I will allow you three to go…" she said haltingly, as if not wanting the words to come out her mouth. "Do your very best and please don't allow yourselves to be captured or killed. If you get in a tight situation, you can determine what to do."

"Yes! Uchiha, here we come!" 'Latios' jumped to his feet, looking overjoyed.

Raquaza cleared her throat and said solemnly, "Take your Pokémon out to Viridian City tonight, then find the designated spot tomorrow morning. Kanto is very dangerous, so stay under wraps. If you can find out anything about our enemy, it is much appreciated."

The meeting was concluded, and the three captains heading out to Kanto went to pack. Vekra knew that this was important, but she could do nothing about it, and it sucked. She looked at the Mewtwo and asked harshly, "Since when were you named a captain?"

Kasmir stood up and answered in a thoughtful tone. "I came to read auras to see if any of the captains were lying. But they are all clear, not a lie about them…"

"You think the spy could be a captain too?" She asked in a lower tone. She glanced around and saw that 'Flygon' had thankfully left the room. "Who do you think?"

Kasmir didn't reply to that, his lips strangely sealed.

"I have a suspicion that it's 'Flygon'…" Vekra barely said it in a whisper.

"And 'Flygon' thinks it's 'Kingdra', and 'Kingdra' thinks it's 'Dragonite', and the list goes on…" the Mewtwo sighed. "But no one has shown any signs that I could tell of betrayal. It's so odd that one of the people that sat here could betray the rest so easily. Chivalry and friendship has suffered greatly…" he looked caught off guard and ventured a small smile. "Sorry, I start speaking like an Aura Guardian sometimes…"

Vekra rolled her eyes. She had no interest in befriending a Pokémon that wanted to be human. It was just wrong. "Whatever, that's what I think." She walked off, but not without checking to see if Caprico was ok. The blue haired boy was younger than her and had his sister being in custody of an unknown evil. She wanted to know how he was taking it.

Caprico wasn't in the room any longer. Vekra supposed that he had raced off after 'Salamence', 'Flygon', and 'Latios' to ask about the trip and his sister.

"Vekra," Raquaza said.

Vekra Ashcroft turned in surprise to face the lady in green. "Yeah?"

"I wanted to apologize for not giving you a mission yet. By the way things are going; the window of opportunity has all but closed." The helmeted lady said with a slightly pained tone. "The only slight task I can give you is a simple check-up on Iron Island."

Vekra frowned. "Do you want me to do that now?"

"I can teleport you." Kasmir offered._ He was a stubborn one at trying to make friends, _she thought.

"Yes, while there is still the ability for you to do so. Kasmir will make sure you don't get into any trouble." Raquaza said calmly, her poise returning to her. She glanced around the room and saw that they were the last in the room. "You see, I have a project going on, and I would like to see how it has progressed."

"Right, I see." Kasmir nodded. "Has Riley begun work without Byron?"

"That's what I want you and Vekra to check on." Raquaza nodded. "You may leave as soon as you can."

"Great." Vekra smiled. It wasn't a huge task, but it felt good to finally leave the same place. After all, she was supposed to be on a Pokémon journey, exploring new places. She sighed and looked at her escort. "Ok, Mewtwo, go ahead and teleport us to Iron Isle."

"The name is Kasmir." He said, slightly offended. He grabbed onto her arm and teleported without any further notice. Vekra had teleported once before, but she still couldn't get over the suffocating sensation.

In a blink of an eye, the two blondes were standing on a rocky heap in the middle of the Sinnoh Sea. Vekra instantly started shivering. Sinnoh was more northern than Hoenn and it was like winter to her.

Kasmir, still keeping up his human disguise, looked pleased with himself. "Well, here we are, welcome to one of Sinnoh's islands."

"Great, let's see what's going on so we can get out of here." Vekra grunted, holding her arms from the cool breeze. She glanced around and saw a cave entrance close by. Without asking if that was the right way, she went inside.

The cave was dim and she paused in order for her eyes to adjust. When she could see what was going on, she gasped. There were four strange Pokémon hauling lumber and working tools like humans. Two of the Pokémon were identified as Machop and Machamp, blue, human-like Pokémon. The other two were completely foreign to her. One was a small, brown Pokémon with pink veins popping out over its body. It carried the lumber at its arm with ease, grinning with bravado. The second Pokémon was similar to the first, but much bigger. It held two pillars of concrete and had a clown-like nose and a slight goatee on its chin.

Kasmir, who had entered after her, looked equally surprised. "I thought Raquaza gave Riley a Gurdurr, but this thing is no Gurdurr."

"What the heck is a Gurdurr?" Vekra asked in a panicked voice. The said not-Gurdurr had noticed them and was walking forward, using the enormous concrete pillars as walking sticks.

"Timburr and Gurdurr are Pokémon Raquaza got from the Unova region, they are really good with building things. I guess this Pokémon evolves when traded, as does Machoke into Machamp." Kasmir smiled and reached out to greet the Pokémon. "Hi, what is your species?" he asked politely.

"Conkeldurr durr durr conkle." It answered.

"I see, nice to meet you Conkeldurr." He smiled at the fighting-type Pokémon. It was shorter than the two arrivals, but somehow formidable.

"Conkel conkeldurr durr-durr con conkel." It said solemnly.

"Yeah, I get that a lot. How's the building? Is Riley around?" Kasmir continued the conversation.

"Duuuurrrrr con-con-conkel conkel conkeldurr." It continued.

"Good, I was thinking that the houses were being built on the outside of the island, but inside will be even safer for hiding. Ok, if you find Riley, tell his Lucario to tell him that I came by. I'm Kasmir by the way." The blonde boy with Pokémon purple eyes smiled to the strange Pokémon.

"Dur." The Conkeldurr nodded and went back to its work of constructing a rough house shell.

"What happened there?" Vekra asked.

Kasmir looked confused, then smiled nervously again. "Oh, I forgot you can't understand Pokémon."

"That's because I'm not a Pokémon." She glared.

Kasmir shrugged and continued, "Conkeldurr says the house building is going fine. They can only create house shells, not really make a complete home. It will take a while to bring in electricity and plumbing, but it's still all coming along."

"You got all that from the small conversation with that thing?" she narrowed her eyes through the gloom. And since when did Raquaza have Pokémon building houses? What was the purpose of it?

"Yes, much of Pokémon conversation is by body language and intonations. Riley is off getting more supplies, so we can't see him right now." the purple eyed Pokémon shrugged. "But our work is done. We can go see Raquaza now if you want."

"What else would I do?" she rolled her eyes.

He shrugged in reply. "I can show you some great places. You know, traveling around as friends."

"Look, I like the offer, but you aren't a friend." Vekra scoffed and walked back outside the cave.

Kasmir came out of the cave behind her. "Why aren't we friends?" he asked. He was clearly not used to being allied with someone but not a friend.

"Because you are a Pokémon and you should start acting like one." She said firmly. She shivered against the wind once more and silently asked Kasmir to take them back to the Mt. Silver base.

The Mewtwo sighed behind her. "I suppose you do have a point… but I can't entirely…"

Vekra suddenly wanted to ask the Pokémon if there were two Raquaza's and if they both were his friends. "Kasmir, is Raquaza actually two people?" She turned around to see his expression.

He avoided eye contact and said, "There is only one Raquaza…"

"Then is she your friend? It didn't look like that today." She pressed further for answers. "Or perhaps every other day she has a different personality. Does she have a mental illness?"

"Ok, ok," Kasmir held up his hands, "There are two people acting as Raquaza. But don't say that to anyone, not even Raquaza herself!" he didn't seem to need much pressure to give out a secret. Vekra wondered what on earth he was doing near the top of the organization with that little of willpower.

"Are one of these Raquaza's a friend to you?"

He nodded.

"And the other one isn't as much?"

He nodded once more. "Ok, let's get back to Raquaza." He said hastily, eager to get off the subject.

Vekra was satisfied with his answers. _So 'Latios' had been right, there were two Raquaza's._ She felt privileged to know this, as if the secret meant that she was trusted even more. She nodded to the Pokémon and let him teleport her back to Mt. Silver. She would have to ask later about this strange building project.

…

Later that evening Corinne Martin sighed and sat down on her bed. The three captains had already left for Viridian City. It would be only one more day, and then Uchiha would be back and safe in Mt. Silver. _I don't really like that Hianna has been acting as Raquaza most of the time. All these important things have happened and I only get to hear from her._ She thought. _Sometimes I wish that I could've just gone as myself instead of acting as the same person with Hianna. I'll be Raquaza tomorrow._

She was already in her night clothes, so she decided to read a book before going to sleep. She opened up the hard bound book and turned on the bedside lamp. Hianna had already gone to bed in her own room. It was completely silent.

Corinne smiled and began to read the novel by the title of The Warrior, and soon her reading took her a few chapters into the book. Sometimes it was nice to escape from the evils of reality in a fiction book.

She jumped as she stretched her feet and felt something lying at the foot of her bed. She hadn't put anything on her bed! She peeked around her book to see what had ended up at her feet. When she saw it, she gave a sigh of relief. "Oh, it's just you…" she remarked.

A Charmeleon was curled up at her feet, hugging its flaming tail near its face. It blinked open an eye to regard her with. Corinne frowned as the Charmeleon's eye looked purple. Before she could say anything, the Charmeleon visage melted to reveal a purple, cat-like Pokémon with a dark purple tail and horns for ears.

"Kasmir…?" Corinne raised her eyebrows at the Mewtwo. Kasmir didn't like to be his normal Mewtwo form, why was he not trying to look human?

It was if he read her thoughts- he said with a grin, "It's kind of a hassle to keep up a different form when I sleep." He shrugged and curled up into a fetal position at the foot of her bed, his purple tail wrapping around his legs and arms to touch his nose.

"Can I ask why you are sleeping there?" 'Raquaza' laughed slightly and put her book down on her lap.

Without opening his eyes again, the Mewtwo answered, "I just have this weird sense of foreboding… I decided to guard this room tonight just in case." His purple tail twitched, as if pointing to the door, "I set up a psychic barrier so I will know if anyone comes in or out of this room. I want 'Raquaza' to stay safe…"

Corinne half-smiled. Sometimes Kasmir could act like a human very well, but he was still a Pokémon. This seemed to confirm the fact, seeing that he wanted to act as a watchdog to protect a human. "Ok, I guess I'll let you sleep there…" she said hesitantly. "Though I don't think it's necessary. I don't think I'm in danger."

The Mewtwo didn't move from his spot. "Trust me." He said quietly.

Corinne blushed and looked away. She sighed, set the book on the stand, and turned out the light. "Ok, have it your way… goodnight…" she said as she turned on her side to sleep. She was glad he couldn't see her face. She was blushing hard as she thought about him sleeping at the foot of her bed. He was worried that she might get attacked or something, or was it because he liked her? She really hated that she liked him back. He was a Pokémon, but yet so agreeable. She tried to stop thinking about him and get some sleep.

**A/N: I can't help having Kasmir scenes, I just love the guy/Pokémon/Mewtwo… thing :D**

**Anyways, the climax is starting! **


	32. Chapter 32, Traitor!

**Chapter 32**

"There it is…" 'Flygon' said breathlessly. She stood, looking at the building in where the captured captain was being kept. It was a relatively new building, standing apart from the small residential area. It was a sort of warehouse, but had no signs welcoming people to store their items in. The address matched the note; 386 Yellow Way.

'Latios' shivered with anticipation. It was taking all his nerve to hold back from running like a madman and throwing open the doors to save his love.

"How are we going to get in?" Kaito frowned. "They probably have security cameras. Should we just run in, or try to make a good excuse to enter?"

"The place seems deserted. I don't think we can try to act like inspectors or what not. But we can't run in either. We have to act like this is a normal thing for us to do. We might even have to wear black suits like the snatcher characters to blend in." Nicole/'Flygon' analyzed the situation. She had done this sort of thing many times before, but always solo. She didn't like the thought of having 'Latios' and 'Salamence' joining her and messing up her disguise and ability to go with the flow.

"Whatever we do, we should do it fast." DJ quipped.

'Flygon' rolled her eyes. DJ was going to be a big handicap in this mission. His emotions were taking over his actions, not his head. "Ok, let's get some suits and see if that works. I think there should be a suit shop in the rinky-dink town." And if camouflage didn't work, they could always use force. They had Pokémon aiding them, and the enemy didn't have any Pokémon defending them. A simple psychic attack could rip a gun right out of their hands, and then they would be at the captain's mercy. 'Flygon' had a trusted Grumpig to help her out if things got tough.

Kaito and DJ nodded. "Ok," they said at the same time. The three captains went off in the other direction of the warehouse.

…

"What are we doing today?" Jaylon asked with a heavy sigh. He was tired of battling, he wanted to travel.

Vekra shrugged and looked at Rin. The Sinnoh girl shrugged and glanced at Caprico, who copied the shrug. Hiku was taking a nap in the infirmary. It was the last part of her recovery to nap. Once she awoke, she'd be pronounced completely healthy. It was up to the four other rookies to find something else to do.

"I'm not sick of battling." Vekra said aloofly. "Actually, I think I want to challenge a gym leader that is staying here, how about you guys?"

"I'll watch…" Rin said with another shrug. She had won a battle in the past few days, but victories were few and far between. She was not all that pumped to battle with her Pokémon for sake of embarrassment. But Frost had begun to fight more often, which was a relief to her. He didn't listen to her, but it was better than before.

"I wish I could see what is happening with the rescue of my sister…" 'Gible'/Caprico sighed and stroked one of his Zangeese on the head. Gemini and Pieces were usually always out of their Pokeballs. The antics of the young twins always amused the rookies and anyone who saw them play-fighting each other.

Jaylon slumped in his chair. "This journey isn't what I planned on in the beginning. I wish I could go back to Hoenn… I need to get out of here." He glanced at the large window showing the towering mount.

"That's it," Rin said happily, "we can hike up Mt. Silver, at least a little ways. It's a huge mountain so we can't scale it in one day." She glanced around the ring of rookies and asked, "What do you guys think?"

"It sounds better than staying in this same place." Jaylon sat up, looking a little less lethargic.

"I'll tell the captains that we will be going out for a while." Caprico said. Pisces and Gemini purred happily along with their trainer and began to play-fight, much to the amusement of the trainers.

Vekra scowled but didn't counter the suggestion. "Fine…"

…

Atri/'Kingdra' waved goodbye to the four rookies. They wanted to go outside to hike up Mt. Silver a little, and there was no harm in that. The man in blue Kingdra cosplay watched them go until the doors closed, obscuring his view. They could take care of themselves.

He frowned to himself. He mentally went through the list of people here. 'Dragonite' and he were the only captains left in the base now. And at this moment 'Dragonite' was in the large stadium room watching gym leaders face off with each other and the trainers here in a battle royal tournament. Kasmir was somewhere, maybe with Raquaza or off on his own tasks. Atri nodded to himself. It was now or never.

He needed to tell Raquaza who the spy was, but it could only be said in private. He walked down the familiar halls to find the woman in green.

…

"Ok, so the plan is that you two are arresting me as a trainer. That will get us closer to Uchiha if there is anyone inside." 'Flygon' said, flipping her hair slightly. "I want you to act like guys who hate me and hate trainers overall. No slip-ups, not even if we see Uchiha." She glared at 'Latios'.

The two other captains, now dressed in authentic black suits, nodded. Kaito strangely fit the suit well, almost looking more of a trainer-snatcher than trainer. Latios was far less convincing, his eyes darting around nervously. Flygon was dressed in a casual wear, to look as typical-trainer as possible. Her Pokéballs were in the open on her belt. But she was ready for anything. The visible Pokéballs contained weak Pokémon that were not her real team. Her real team-Pokémon were stored up her sweater sleeves.

"Ok, let's get this stupid trainer to the barracks!" Kaito huffed and grabbed Nicole's arm gruffly, getting into character.

DJ took a deep breath and attempted to be as formidable. "Come with us and your precious Pokémon won't die…" he mumbled.

"Really, I would think that I'd be a better grunt. But so far we haven't had any reports of female snatchers, so I can't take your place…" 'Flygon' rolled her eyes. "And secondly, make up names for yourself in case we have to tell anyone. You can't let anyone know your real names."

"I'm going to be Boris, a typical thug name." Kaito said roughly, perfecting his attitude to match a trainer snatcher.

"I'll be…"

"'Keith' would fit you…" Nicole grunted.

"Ok, I'll be Keith…" DJ said unsteadily.

"I was kidding, but whatever…" she replied. "I'm going to be called Ima. When I yell 'Go, Pokémon,' that's the signal to break your characters. You clear?"

"Clear as crystal." Kaito said and pushed his sunglasses over his eyes. "Come on, Keith, we've got a hostage."

DJ nodded and began in hauling Nicole over to the warehouse.

The two suited men began to fight Nicole, who was now fighting and cursing them. Her act was pretty realistic for being all show. Kaito had to put his fellow captain in a chicken wing hold by twisting her arm behind her back. Nicole continued to fight and put on a good spectacle.

The three reached the door without any encounters with people. Kaito opened the door roughly and they entered. Nicole stopped her struggling to look around the room. It was dim, with only a light bulb hanging from the ceiling to light it. It was completely silent. Nothing else stirred. There was a hallway in front of them, lighted sparsely with light bulbs.

"Ok, come on trainer scum!" Kaito growled and began to take her down the dark hallway. She fought again, screaming out curses. DJ became offended at her outrage and released his hold on Nicole. She whipped her arm free and began to fight Kaito, but the captain managed to capture both of her arms.

"Worthless underling!" Kaito barked at DJ, keeping his character very convincing.

DJ sighed, as if tempted to ask if they could break character because of the emptiness on the building. He didn't see why he needed to act like a trainer snatcher when no one was around. "Sorry…" he mumbled.

Kaito continued to haul Nicole around down the hallway. There were a few doors to enter into, and Kaito ordered DJ (in typical tyrant fashion) to open them to see if someone was already in there. If there wasn't, he scoffed and took Nicole further down the passage.

"What do you want, bastard?" Nicole's face was red from exertion.

"Keep quiet, scum!" Kaito growled back.

DJ opened another door and found something waiting inside. There was a wooden chair, back to the door. There appeared to be someone already in the seat. DJ's heart jumped. "Is this suitable?" he asked, pointing to the chair.

Kaito didn't show any change in his character, but he nodded. "Alright, or newest prisoner can stay here." He threw Nicole against the wall, and she pretended to faint, slumping down to the ground. Kaito lowered his shades to see better in the dark. "You there in the chair, state your name."

The figure in the chair stirred slightly, but said nothing.

'Salamence' stomped around the chair and bent down to get a better look at the person. "State. Your. Name!" he said like a drill sergeant.

The figure made a strained sound, but no distinguishable words. On closer inspection, the figure was tied to the chair and had a dirty cloth tied around her mouth. She had dark hair, perhaps blue. Her eyes opened in the gloom and she gave a cry of sound through the gag. She had recognized Kaito.

"Let me guess, you are the Johto girl that got a place on the news, eh?" he said darkly.

She nodded, her eyes showing fear. She obviously suspected that Kaito had joined the evil forces now and was near tears.

DJ was near tears as well, he hated seeing her tied there in a wreck and not able to help.

Nicole jumped up from her slumped position and pulled out one of the weak Pokémon Pokéballs. "I'll show you to capture me! Go, Pokémon!"

Instantly, the three began to gather around the captive, breaking their character and talking happily. "Oh Uchiha! It's been such a long time since I've seen you!" Flygon said happily.

"Are you ok, sweetheart? Who hurt you?" DJ clasped her hands.

"Sorry about that, we were all acting. I don't really hate you." Kaito apologized.

Once Uchiha understood what was going on, she began to cry happily. She was at long last saved!

…

"Raquaza…" Kingdra said in his quiet manner. "I need to tell you something in private…"

"What is it?" she asked with interest. They were sitting in the stands, watching a brave trainer take on Winona in a battle. The trainer was using an Electabuzz to combat her Skarmory, but was loosing.

"I know who the spy is, but I can't say it out loud… I need to know that no one will overhear it…" he said, avoiding her gaze.

The blonde woman shrugged. "I don't see why you need to tell me in private. Once I know, the traitor will be arrested and interrogated. It will be all thanks to you."

"But we must confer on how to catch the traitor off-guard. Please." He pleaded.

She shrugged. "Alright, if you insist." She stood up and walked down the bleachers. The two people in cosplay stepped off the bleachers and walked out of the room. "Is here better?" Raquaza asked.

"No, it needs to be safer…" Kingdra grasped his hands on his cosplay.

"Are you paranoid that you'll be killed?" she asked with concern.

"Yes, let's go up to the sound-proof room. That should be safe enough."

…

Uchiha gasped as the gap was finally taken out of her mouth. She was now completely free from the bonds holding her to the chair and she vaulted into DJ's arms. She couldn't put into words how grateful she was. Her fellow captains had come to rescue her.

Then she felt her heart sink in teror. She gasped out, "Who-who is watching… who is watching the base?" she gasped.

"That's the first thing you saw after we save you?" Kaito scoffed. "No 'thank you for saving me', no-o-o-o…" he crossed his arms and rolled his eyes, as if saying 'ungrateful little wench'.

Flygon was surprised as well. "Why do you care about that?"

'Latios' held her in his arms, stroking her hair and muttering something inaudible.

Uchiha gasped, excitement clouding her words… "Is 'Kingdra' guarding the base?"

…

"Ok, here's the sound proof room." Raquaza said simply. She entered the room and sat behind a desk inside. "Won't you sit down? You seem very agitated."

Atri/'Kingdra' closed the door tightly behind him and he smiled at the click of the lock.

…

"Yeah, he's at the base, why?" 'Flygon' said anxiously. "We really shouldn't be talking right now, this is a trap and I don't want to be caught in it. Let's get out as fast as we can!" she rose to her feet and tried to get DJ and Uchiha to stand as well.

"But Atri… Walhoff… they…!" 'Latias' gasped.

DJ looked into her eyes and asked, "What are you talking about?"

"Atri's one of them! He's a trainer snatcher!"


	33. Chapter 33, Discovery

**A/N: This was a hard chapter to write because I had planned something else to happen, but I decided against. So here is a pretty short chapter.**

**Chapter 33**

Rin wiped at her forehead. They hadn't been climbing Mt. Silver for a long time, but the constant uphill climb was exhausting. She glanced at the rest of the rookies. They seemed as tired as she was. "Well, what do you think?" she asked the rest of them.

"Let's turn back. I can't take much more of this." Vekra complained. She wasn't wearing very hike-worthy clothes and her jean capris were making red marks on her legs.

Jaylon looked winded, but still determined. "I've heard that Moltres is sometimes found here, maybe we can find it. Just a little more, then I guess we'll have to go back."

Caprico was sitting down on the rocks, petting his twin Zangeese. He was tired, but his Pokémon looked more exhausted. They had chased each other around on the rocks and had wasted much of their energy in play.

"Ok," Rin shrugged. "Let's go back to the base. It's nice to get different scenery, but I'm pretty worn out."

Jaylon shrugged. "I'll go with the rest of you guys." He was sweating, but his red bandana soaked up the sweat quite nicely. His brown hair was a little matted, but he looked in shape. "This kind of reminds me when Hiku and I were traveling to Fallabor town from Mauville. It was rough, but we made it. But this time we are climbing just for fun."

Vekra sighed and sat down. "Maybe I was missing out on a lot when I took off from you guys…" she admitted.

Jaylon raised his eyebrows, looking surprised. "You… wait, what?"

"After this whole adventure, I think that I missed out on the fun you guys had together... Hiku's a nice teammate, and I didn't give her the time of day." The blonde said guiltily.

"And what about me?" Jaylon looked a little offended.

"You…" she smirked. "I guess you're ok."

"Oh yeah? Let's battle to settle that!" Jaylon frowned. _Just ok? _He'd show her!

"Not on the mountain idiot!" Vekra stood back up. "Let's get off the mountain, grab Hiku, eat lunch, then battle it out, that sound alright?" she shrugged haughtily. "I bet you can't beat me back to the base." She smirked and began to sprint down the rocky mountain face.

"Hey, you can't have a head start!" he yelled and began to race after her. Gravity was making him run fast, but he slowed down to prevent himself from falling. That would really hurt, especially since the rocks were far from smooth or soft.

Rin and Caprico began to walk down the mountain, not engaging in the race.

Jaylon caught up the Vekra, but couldn't send her taunts or smirks while he watched his footing. Vekra saw that he was going to beat her, and she pushed herself to run faster. In no time, they were on level ground and running with a speed neither of them knew that they had. Vekra was surprisingly fast and competitive; she was giving him a run for his money.

They raced through the door and pushed each other as they changed direction to the infirmary, still in race mode. They raced neck and neck with each other, unable to pass each other up. They both burst through the door at the same time.

"I won." Vekra smirked and crossed her arms.

"Yeah right, I was clearly in front of you!" Jaylon argued back.

Vekra pointed to the now waking up Hiku on the medical bed. "Hiku saw, who got in here first?" she addressed the raven-haired girl.

Hiku rubbed her eyes and yawned. "What are you guys arguing about today?" her half-sleepiness was very endearing, even to Vekra. Nano the Mudkip jumped out of his Pokéball to land on her head and chirp happily. It was strange that even though Nano was Hiku's first Pokémon, he hadn't evolved yet.

"Hiku would say that I was in first, isn't that right, partner?" he said, taunting Vekra with the partner issue once again.

"I don't know…" she shrugged and yawned again.

Vekra threw up her hands and proclaimed, "Fine, I guess I'll let it stand at a draw." Then she went over to the sleepy girl and said happily, "So, you are officially all healed up from the trainer snatching, isn't that right?" she grinned in a wicked fashion over to Jaylon, as if showing him up by being happy for Hiku.

"Yes, thanks…" Hiku smiled and Nano chirped along to match her mood.

Jaylon clenched his fist in anger. "Well, once Rin and Caprico get here, we should all get lunch. I'll buy!"

"It's ok, Jaylon." Hiku got up from the bed. She had worn regular clothes while she had slept, so she didn't need to change. "I've got money of my own. Besides, I wanted to eat lunch with my family."

Vekra shrugged haughtily at the boy.

Before Jaylon could combat with words again, the wrinkled face of 'Dragonite' popped in the infirmary. "I heard something going on, is everything ok?"

The three Hoenners nodded.

He sighed. "I can't seem to find 'Raquaza' anywhere. Have you seen her lately?"

The three all shook their heads; Nano joining in the movement while on top of Hiku's head.

…

"Stop talking about Atri, we'll deal with him once we get back." DJ looked deep into Uchiha's eyes and held her shoulders. "Right now all that matters is getting out before any trap is triggered!"

Uchiha shook her head slowly, as if not used to moving so fast. "He's the traitor… we have to stop him… he and Walhoff…"

"Get up, Uchiha, please!" 'Latios' begged and lifted her up by her waist. She remained limp from lack of moving around and good food. DJ lifted her up and over his shoulder as to carry her out. Uchiha didn't fight as she was slung over DJ's back; she only continued muttering feverishly.

'Flygon' grimaced at the state Uchiha was in. It felt heartbreaking to see someone so strong turn into a near mad person. The red-haired woman glanced around the dim corridor again. Nothing seemed to be triggered by their presence… was this place safe? _Why was it not guarded if a captain of Raquaza was being held here? Did her captors really just leave her?_ "I don't like this, it seems all too easy…" she muttered.

"Yeah, I feel the same way. Let's get out." Kaito agreed. He stepped out of the room and ushered the burdened 'Latios' and 'Flygon' out with hand signals. The two walking captains and the held 'Latias' exited and walked as fast as they could out without looking entirely panicked.

"Do you think that Atri is really a traitor?" DJ said quietly to the others.

"I don't know, he's always been so quiet… He's a collector person, so I don't know about that. But I don't see where his motivation is…" Kaito shrugged, walking at the back of the pack.

"Although, when he and I were flying back from Sinnoh, he pointed out the roof that had Uchiha's name on it…" Nicole/'Flygon' said thoughtfully. "And he wanted to meet with the Hoenn rookies when they were scheduled to get their Pokémon. I thought it was to help them, but maybe he wanted to get a good look at them…"

Kaito huffed. "Girls think too much."

"No really, I've always thought something was odd about Atri." Nicole shot back.

"That's easy for you to say now that Uchiha is repeating it over and over again." Kaito huffed back. "Let's just get back to base and worry about that later." At that, the four captains emerged from the dim building and into the bright sunlight. Kaito put on his shades once more to protect his eyes.

There was no person wandering the streets to see them leave. This was even odder to 'Flygon'. This was supposed to a bustling town. She glanced at the other buildings and sighed. Then again, the placement by the Viridian Forest might be scaring the residents… "Well, I can say this went smoothly…"

"No… you don't understand…" Uchiha pleaded. "You shouldn't have come… You left Atri with Raquaza and now they know your faces…" she whimpered in hardly understandable English.

"Know our faces?" Kaito stopped in his tracks. "Why didn't you say it earlier?"

"They said they'd kill us all if I said it inside. They had wires and videos… you won't be able to leave to Unova…" the blue haired woman sniveled.

…

The five rookies all stood in the main area with the elderly captain. Jaylon didn't know what the big deal was with finding Raquaza, it was normal for a leader of her status to go off on her own, wasn't it? Hiku seemed to feel that something was wrong. Rin mirrored Hiku's worry. Caprico on the other hand was sending his Zangeese to sniff out Raquaza. Vekra was still put out at not being able to eat right away. Dragonite showed the most concern.

"Have you seen Atri?" he asked.

"Who's that?" the rookies asked in unison.

"Kingdra. He's the scrawny captain with black hair. I saw him talking to Raquaza earlier… then they left and I haven't seen them since. Do you think…?" the man ground out in his low voice. He was in Dragonite cosplay only up to the waist. He wore a striped, button-up shirt for his shirt, which didn't seem to match the yellow Dragonite design pants.

"That he and Raquaza went on a secret trip?" Caprico finished Brian/'Dragonite's thought. "Do they often talk together?"

"Sometimes they talk about Kanto, but they aren't fast friends. Raquaza and Diego are better friends." The older man answered.

Vekra rolled her eyes and elbowed Jaylon. "Hey, you're the only person here with a Pokémon you can understand. Shouldn't you be using your Zangoose to find Raquaza?" her face showed her distaste, and a slight hint of jealousy.

Jaylon sighed and pulled out his Pokéball for Rain. He called her out and the white cat-ferret Pokémon emerged from the flash of red light. The Zangoose swished her tail lazily and sat down on the floor.

"Hey, Rain, I need you find the scent of Raquaza. We want to see if she's ok." Jaylon said to his Pokémon.

"Zan goose-goose goose Zan Zangoose [Which scent? It changes every so often.]" The Zangoose replied without interrupting her grooming. She swiped her pink tongue across her black claws, giving them a slight shine.

"What do you mean by that?" Jaylon scratched his slightly damp head. "Changing scents?"

Vekra seemed to know what it meant, and she addressed the grooming Pokémon. "Whichever scent she was today. We can start in the stands if you need a starting point." She didn't dare tough Jaylon's Pokémon, especially since it was a pretty strong Pokémon that had repeatedly beaten her own Pokémon.

"What do you …?" Jaylon was becoming increasingly confused.

"Zangoose Zan goose Zangoose goose Zan-Zan-Zan goo-goose [I already sniff her trail, but its faint…]" Rain sniffed indignantly.

"Then lead us to where she is!" Jaylon said, excitement growing in his voice.

"Zan [Why?]"

Jaylon sighed and tried explaining it again to his Pokémon. "Ok, we are worried about her, so we need to find her. Can you track her?"

The white Pokémon simply got to her feet and began to sniff slightly and follow an imaginary path. The twin Zangeese looked up from their sniffing and scampered over to help the older Zangoose find a person. They were obviously younger and couldn't track all that well.

The group of five rookies and the veteran captain followed the trio of Zangeese up to the next floor and to a row of rooms that none of them had ventured to. Rain paused and began to sniff in circles until she sat at the door.

"Goose goo-goose Zan… Zangoose Zangoose [This is where it stops. Do I smell blood?]" Rain pawed at the heavy steel door.

Jaylon heard her and gulped. "You say you think you smell blood?" he turned to the others and said firmly; "We have to get in there!"

Dragonite didn't hesitate. He grabbed the handle of the door and eased it open. The door wasn't locked, and no one spoke as it was opened. Slowly the room was revealed to the five rookies and the captain. Dragonite gulped as he saw a form slumped on the desk inside.

Dragonite closed the door before the others could get a good glimpse of what lay inside. Vekra protested against him, but he said with a trembling voice, "No, we shouldn't go in there."

"What's going on?" Rin asked, even though her face seemed to tell that she had expected the worst.

"Yeah, what's in there?" Vekra crossed her arms.

"You kids…" he apused and instructed, "Jaylon, tell your Zangoose to try to find if any scent comes out of this room and where it went. Vekra, aide Jaylon. Hiku, Rin, and Caprico, guard this door and make sure no one gets in. I'm going to find Kasmir."

"Why do you have to find that stupid…?" Vekra muttered.

"Because he knows Raquaza the best, and I think I'm the only one who can face him if he gets very angry." The old man answered and began to re-trace his steps.

Jaylon shuddered; he knew that Kasmir could become violent and quite merciless. _Wasn't Kasmir a good friend of Raquaza as well? Who was lying dead in the room?_ Jaylon gulped once again. "Don't tell me that she's…"

"We won't know until we get a medic and Kasmir here. Hiku, could you find the medic and bring him here?" Dragonite instructed as he left the room. "Now get going!"


	34. Chapter 34, Gunpoint

**Chapter 34**

Kasmir had not had anything go wrong last night, sleeping at the foot of Corinne's bed and waiting for intruders, but no one had come. What was it that kept him on edge? His psychic powers seemed to feel something he couldn't comprehend. Was the spy going to make his or her move? He shuddered.

The Mewtwo was once again in human form, walking around the base lazily, only thinking about the weird foreboding. He closed his purple eyes and continued walking around, feeling his way with aura. He stretched his senses throughout the base. He could see the tournament of gym leaders in the large battle arena, and then look over to the lunch area where some trainers were talking with each other, Pokémon eating from their trays. He felt some one leave the building, but thought nothing of it.

Then he could feel and see Dragonite running around, searching for something. His aura was troubled. Kasmir opened his eyes once more and frowned. I'll go find Dragonite and see what's up. He thought. He turned around and began to walk with slight haste to the old man.

Dragonite appeared around the next corner, sweat dripping from his brow. "Kasmir… just the man I was looking for!" his voice was strained, and Kasmir could feel his fear.

"Hey, what's gotten you frightened?" the Mewtwo replied. His fur under the human guise started to rise as the sense of foreboding became stronger.

"There's been a murder… in this very base…" he said haltingly, his eyes flicking to and from Kasmir's purple eyes.

Kasmir's heart pounded. "Who?" he asked. The very thought of someone being murdered here… no trainer snatcher had found this place, it could only be a betrayal. That riled him up.

Brian/'Dragonite' inhaled deeply and looked to the ground. "It might be Raquaza…"

Kasmir's mind froze_. No… of all the possible things to go wrong, that couldn't be the case! Who could've done this? _His mind raced, trying to come up with a question or a threat_. But which Raquaza was attacked if not killed?_ His eyes grew small in fear. _Don't tell me it's Corinne…! _He looked at Dragonite, who appeared quite terrified. "Where?" he demanded, his voice deepening.

Dragonite pointed in the general direction of the place. "Second floor, sound-proof room…" he was careful not to look Kasmir in the eye.

Kasmir stayed where he was. "No… that can't be her… I can't feel anything in there…" he shut his eyes and used his aura to find Raquaza. It wasn't possible that Raquaza could be caught off-guard! It just couldn't be…! "You are wrong…! She's in her room…" he stammered. He couldn't bear it; he had to see who wasn't Raquaza today. He spun around and floated to Raquaza's room. He didn't care if Dragonite was amazed that he could float; he wanted to make sure Corinne wasn't the one in the sound-proof room!

Kasmir came to the door and threw it open. He glanced around quickly and called, "'Raquaza'!"

A blonde woman appeared from the other room connected to the first room. Kasmir ran to her and wrapped his arms around her in an Ursarang-type hug.

"What the…? What are you doing Kasmir?" the blonde woman coughed from the strength of his hug.

"Corinne… you aren't dead…" he said softly, refusing to stop hugging her. He rocked back and forth slightly and leaned his head against her head.

Corinne Martin was still very confused. "No, I'm not dead…" she answered back, blushing at the Pokémon hugging her. "Why would I be?"

"I thought you were Raquaza today."

Corinne shook her head slightly. "I wanted to be, but Hianna talked me out of it. What's happened, Kasmir?"

"'Raquaza' has been killed…" Kasmir said quietly and held her closer, if that was possible.

Corinne froze. "What?" she whispered back.

"We need to see what's happened…" he said, and teleported them both to the said murder area. After the brief travel, they stood on the second floor, next to the startled Rin and Caprico. Kasmir let go of Corinne and raced to the door. "Let me in." he said.

Caprico and Rin stared at him as if he was an alien. "Did you just…?" Rin stammered.

Kasmir rolled his eyes. "I'm a psychic human. Haven't you heard of them before? Sabrina of Kanto, Kyle the Lugia Rider, magicians, people like that? Now I need to see Raquaza!" this story usually worked when people got a sampling of his psychic abilities.

"Who's that?" Rin pointed to the blonde woman.

"A friend of mine." He said and opened the door anyways. He stepped inside the room and flipped on the light. The Pokémon stopped and grimaced at the scene. Raquaza/Hianna was lying face-first on the desk, a pool of blood spreading out from her neck. Nothing else about her was damaged to be seen. It looked like a very clean kill, no blood spatters.

Corinne came in the room after him and gasped at her partner. Hianna's helmet was off, lying on the floor near the desk. Her eyes were frozen open, a strained and confused look on her face. Corinne grasped onto Kasmir's arm. "That could have been me… Oh Hianna, why wasn't it me?" she began to sob.

Rin and Caprico looked in and got a better look at what had happened. Rin looked very scared and Caprico backed away.

"Is there any hope for her?" Corinne Martin choked out.

"Her aura is gone." The Mewtwo replied. "The only thing we can do for her now is to capture her killer…" he clenched his fists tightly. He patted Corinne and said, "You know what you have to do now. Once the other captains get back, we'll have to tell them about this." He paused and said tenderly, "Stay safe, ok? You are the leader of this by yourself. The last thing we need is for both Raquaza's to die."

Corinne sniffed and nodded. "You are right, Kasmir. I'm the sole leader now, and I must be strong for the others."

Dragonite had joined Rin and Caprico at the door. He frowned and asked, "What do you mean by that? Who is she and how is she Raquaza?"

"There were two Raquazas." Kasmir said quickly. "Now I need to figure out who and where the murderer is."

Dragonite still seemed to have trouble accepting that his leader was actually two people. He cleared his throat and said, "I sent Jaylon and his Zangoose after the scent that left this room. Maybe you can get an idea…"

"That'll work out great." The Mewtwo nodded. He hugged Corinne once more before leaving the room. Kasmir closed his eyes and found Jaylon, Rain the Zangoose, and Vekra with his aura sense. Without hesitation, he ran out to intercept them.

…

"So, does this trail lead anywhere important? It feels like Rain's leading us nowhere." Vekra narrowed her eyes at the white Pokémon.

"Well… I don't know." Jaylon shrugged. "Hey, Rain, are we going the right way?" he asked his Zangoose.

"Goose Zangoose goo-goose Zan goose [What were we following again?]" the female Zangoose seemed to snicker back.

"Don't tell me that you've lost the scent! Rain, we need to help in this investigation!" Jaylon dug his fingers into his head. Just when he thought he and Rain were getting to become better friends, she had to snub and ruin his work!

"Do you think Raquaza died in there, or was it someone else?" Vekra frowned. "Maybe our leader isn't as nice as we thought."

"It can't be that our leader is horrible. You just are saying that because you like to rebel against her! She's a really friendly person and you think she's corrupt?" Jaylon turned on his fellow Hoenner. "She might be dead and you aren't feeling remorse or sadness?"

Vekra shot back at him, "I'm a captain, higher ranking than you. I don't take things for face value, because this world is full of liars and deceit! I'm just trying to see if there's any other way of looking at this!"

Jaylon sighed and gave up. "I guess you might have a point, but… it just seems so irreverent…"

At this, Rain stiffened and glared at something coming close. Both trainers turned and tensed as well. "If we have to fight tag-team, don't get in my way." Vekra reached and drew out a Pokéball from her belt.

"Don't get in your way? Of all the…!" Jaylon shot back. But there was no need for a fight; the approaching person was only Kasmir.

"Hey, no time to talk… to you anyways…" he addressed the humans and knelt down to face Rain. "Rain, I need to know what you've picked up on the killer's scent."

Vekra glanced to Jaylon to check his expression. They both knew that Kasmir was a Mewtwo, so neither of them looked too surprised.

"Zan Zangoose goose-goose-goose Goose Zangoose Zan." Rain replied.

"That's great." Kasmir said sarcastically. "I can't scent the killer and describing the scent doesn't help. Are you sure you don't have any idea what the killer looks like?"

"Didn't Dragonite say that Raquaza was last with Kingdra?" Vekra said out loud, though not directed to anyone. If Kasmir didn't want to talk with them, so be it!

Kasmir seemed delighted to hear that. He jumped up and faced Vekra. "Excellent!" he said. He looked slightly different; as if he looked older and was serious (that was a rare sight!). "Do you think that Atri could've been the culprit?"

Vekra shrugged. "I told you before that I thought Flygon was the spy. I guess she could still be a spy, but Kingdra is a killer… Isn't Kingdra from Kanto?" she shrugged. It felt weird to call the captains by their real names. She knew most of them first by their Pokémon codenames.

"Why didn't I think of that?" Kasmir crossed his arms and looked to the ceiling thoughtfully. "Atri hid very well by being the quiet one in the group. His presence was unnoticed and if he ever slipped out to see an informer, we had no way of knowing…" He stopped talking and seemed to concentrate on something. "I felt someone leave earlier before finding Raquaza… He might have fled…" he paused and grinned. "But he's still within two miles!"

"What's that…?"

Kasmir looked slightly intimidating as he said his next sentence. "I'll find the traitor and bring him back here!" he spun and ran off, which seemed to be normal for today. "I'll be back!" he called to the two Hoenn rookies.

"But wait! This guy killed Raquaza! He can kill you too!" Jaylon yelled after the Pokémon.

Kasmir stopped and waved. "Come on, I lived through the Aura Guardian wars and the rise of the ferocious Razzen. I can take on a petty murderer!"

…

Once out of the base, Kasmir summoned up his psychic powers and flew off through the sky. He kept up his human guise up, thinking it would be odder for a passerby to see a Mewtwo flying through the sky than a human. There were only three known Mewtwos in the world, him being one of them. The others were the original Mewtwo and Kasmir's sister, who had disappeared a while back (and that was fine with Kasmir!).

He was mainly relying now on his aura senses to lead him to the fleeing murderer. Atri was evidently flying on a Pidgeot as his get-away Pokémon. Kasmir could soar through the air with the power of his mind, hence could fly faster. Atri's aura was growing closer and closer. They were nearly over the Indigo Plateau when Kasmir finally saw Atri with his eyes.

The Mewtwo didn't want to ask questions, he wanted to take down the brute you had killed Hianna and was threatening everyone else back in the base! He continued to fly forward, but started creating a blue orb between his two hands. He shot the Aura sphere directly at the man, but the Pidgeot's flying made the aura sphere miss and barely sail over the crook's head.

The angry man turned around and saw Kasmir forming another aura sphere to aim. Atri didn't look the same as before. His quiet demeanor was wiped away and a slightly crazy look played across his features. He directed the bird Pokémon to dive slightly, and the second attack missed once more.

"Kasmir, what's the meaning of this?" Atri/'Kingdra' held out his hands in an innocent gesture, though his expression wasn't matching.

"You killed Raquaza and have been giving secret information to our enemy! After I fight you a bit, I'm going to haul you back for proper judgment!" Kasmir yelled back.

"No proof?" the scrawny man shrugged. "No proof won't help you very much."

Kasmir glared. "So, your quietness disappears with the death of the leader? I'd say your acting skills rival 'Flygon's! And I'm a psychic Pokémon if you didn't know. I can already see your memories of killing the leader." Kasmir was bluffing of course, if he had seen his memories the Mewtwo would be much more sickened than angry.

"Then try to predict the future, Pokémon." He said coyly. With a quick flip of his wrist, Atri held out a pistol aimed at the floating human-looking being. Within a blink of the eye, Atri fired off a booming shot.

Kasmir jumped in midair as the screaming bullet flew past his face. He didn't show any fear and gathered up energy for another Aura sphere. If his attack hit, the traitor would be knock off his mount. The Aura Sphere flew forward, but the Pidgeot climbed in time for the shot to miss once more. "You stupid Pidgeot! Can't you see that all your trainer wants of you is to turn you into a frozen hunk of meat?" Kasmir yelled in frustration at the bird.

The large brown bird seemed to consider his words briefly, but still obeyed Atri's orders of a 'gust' attack. The bird Pokémon dove forward and flapped its wing to create a gust of wind to send Kasmir flying back. The Mewtwo fought against the wind, but fell. It the instant the Mewtwo was carried by the wind, Atri aimed another shot at the human-looking Pokémon.

Kasmir flinched as the bullet ripped through his shoulder. The flash of pain weakened his concentration, and his human appearance melted away. Now looking like a real Pokémon, Kasmir floated back up to face the traitor. He gasped and held his left arm, holding back the blood. His thick purple tail twitched in frustration and anger.

"It looks like you aren't quite the fighter as you were before. But at last I get to see you real form." Atri said, eyes slightly lidded in snootiness. "Now, I believe that my collection of Pokémon is not complete without a Mewtwo…"

Kasmir held up his right, uninjured hand and created a psychic barrier. "There's no way you are capturing me!" he ground his teeth. This was more than he bargained for!

"The Pokéball eventually tames the Pokémon kept inside to its trainer. You ought to know that." Atri said menacingly. He took out a red and white sphere and tossed it up in the air.

Kasmir tried not to show his fear. Pokéballs were so strange and unnatural. The last thing he wanted was to get captured by the person he was trying to capture. He had to get close enough to Atri to teleport them both back to the base!

Atri threw the Pokéball at Kasmir. It strangely sailed through his psychic shield and bumped against his purple skin. The hinge opened and Kasmir turned into red energy, which was then sucked into the ball. The sphere broke open immediately, and Kasmir hung in the air, panting from fright.

"I might have to wound you more to capture you…" the black haired traitor smirked.

Kasmir took a deep breath and teleported himself behind Atri. He grabbed onto his black shirt and focused as quickly as he could to teleport.

Atri reacted quicker than Kasmir predicted. The man whipped the three-fingered hand off his shoulder and aimed the small pistol at the Mewtwo's head. Without any hint of hesitation, he fired another shot.

Kasmir hastily teleported out of the way of the bullet and reappeared on the Pidgeot's head. He glared and Atri and began to use a psychic attack to bring him forward. The only thing that mattered was to get Atri teleported back to base before he could tell anyone on Kanto about Raquaza and any other secrets he might have found.

Atri fired a third shot, connecting with Kasmir's right hip. He fell forward in pain, almost falling off the bird entirely. His psychic attack faded away. He could still use his wounded arm and leg, but they stung and bled. He glared at the traitor. How could he loose to a human?

"Now you can choose to be my Pokémon or die." Atri held out his smoking pistol and an ultra-ball, one in each hand.

"You are the one who'll die! Traitors never prosper!" Kasmir spat in reply.

"Sorry to hear that." Atri raised the gun and squeezed the trigger.

**A/N: AHHH! Kasmir! **

**Anyways, college is coming up quick, so I'm going to try my best to finish this before that.**


	35. Chapter 35, Escape

**Chapter 35**

Kasmir knew what he was doing. He lie crouched down on the Pidgeot's neck, staring down a pistol barrel. Atri, the traitor, was obviously not holding back and would kill him without a second thought. It was perfect.

Kasmir waited until the last possible second to dodge the shot. He threw himself to the side and slipped off the brown bird's thick neck. Kasmir was falling toward the Indigo plateau with a bleeding arm and leg, but his fighting spirit wasn't subdued.

Atri fired the gun a millisecond off, but instead of hitting the Mewtwo; he hit his own Pidgeot in the neck! The great bird Pokémon cried out and began to fall to the ground as well. The shot in the neck killed it instantly. Atri began to fall from the absence of his flying Pokémon. He tried to return his Pokémon to its Pokéball, but Pokéballs can't return dead Pokémon. He cursed loudly.

Kasmir hovered along with Atri and smiled. "So, wither you come with me and receive judgment, or you fall to your death…"

"You haven't won yet!" Atri yelled. He held out another Pokéball and called out another flying Pokémon. This Pokémon was of Sinnoh origin, and was black and grey with white and red markings. The Staraptor trilled and scooped Atri up from his fall.

"Why do your Pokémon help you when you hate trainers? How can you be a trainer while killing them?" Kasmir thrashed his tail in anger and floated to meet Atri's eyes on his new bird Pokémon.

"A Pokémon like you can never understand human motivation." Atri sneered back. He held up his pistol again (he kept holding onto it while he was falling?) and aimed it at Kasmir.

The Mewtwo wondered how many shots a pistol had. So far Atri had shot around five times, if it only had six shots, then this would be Atri's last shot. But then again, Kasmir hadn't predicted this to turn into a gun fight or get wounded, so Atri might even have another gun hidden on him.

Kasmir glanced down at the ground and saw the broken body of the Pidgeot. Atri didn't care for Pokémon life –that much was true. Kasmir didn't like how this was turning out. Now he might be lucky to get out alive. "I can understand humans relatively well. I'm not going to stop fighting until you are brought to justice!"

"So old fashioned…" the scrawny man scoffed back and fired.

Kasmir gasped. He looked down at himself and saw a bullet wound in his middle. He instinctively curled around the wound and felt his psychic powers failing him. _No, this can't be the end…_ he thought and fought to stay afloat in the air. The Staraptor flew in closer and pecked his head. This final jolt of pain sent Kasmir falling to the ground once more.

The Mewtwo didn't have enough power left to even teleport back. He had made a stupid mistake… his hearing was dimming. He heard something muffled from far away. He didn't know if it was good or bad. His body was growing limp and he was turning head over feet in the air.

A strange thing suddenly appeared underneath him and stopped his fall. The thing that saved him said something, but Kasmir couldn't make it out. He was hardly awake, the bleeding and shock were working against him. He closed his eyes and thought bitterly, _why didn't I learn the move 'recover'_?

…

"Good catch, Darcen!" Kaito praised his Honchkrow. Kaito himself was riding on 'Flygon's Flygon and did not like what was happening on their way back to Mt. Silver. A showdown between a Pokémon and a gun firing human was a first, and its wasn't a really good first at that. The captain glared at Atri and shouted, "What the heck was that for? Sure he's annoying sometimes, but _shooting_ Kasmir?"

"Kasmir?" Latios, Latias, and Flygon asked and looked closer at the Mewtwo.

Kaito was the only one of the good captains that really knew that. But it was too much effort to try to tell everyone while facing off with Atri. _What was his deal?_ Darcen the Honchkrow glided closer to the group of four captains with the injured Mewtwo lying on his feathery back.

Atri Tems, sitting astride his Staraptor, glared at the four other captains.

Uchiha, who was riding DJ's Staraptor, gasped and buried her face into DJ's back. "It's him…" she whimpered.

"We've been hearing bad things about you from our long-lost captain 'Latias'. Are you a traitor?" Kaito asked with a glare. It was suspicious enough to see him fire on Kasmir, but he hadn't seen enough to convict the scrawny man.

Atri glared and didn't say anything in reply.

"Attacking a friend of Raquaza is enough to make me doubt your loyalty." Kaito growled and called out his Female Pikachu. "Anobe, use 'Thunder'!".

Atri's Staraptor climbed quickly into the air to avoid the attack and use the sun as a blinding effect. Kaito squinted through the intense sunlight to watch Atri and see what he'd do. He couldn't see anything and nothing came swooping in for an attack. A minute passed by and Kaito swore. "He got away!" his female Pikachu seemed to swear along with him, sending out sparks from her red cheecks.

Flygon/Nicole crossed her arms. "So what the heck was that about?"

"You mean why they were fighting in the first place?" 'Salamence' shrugged. "Kasmir doesn't fight very much, so I can only assume that something bad has happened."

DJ and Uchiha stared at the purple cat-like humanoid figure on the Honchkrow's back. "Is that really Kasmir?" DJ asked.

"Yeah, he's a Pokémon and alive for now. Now we got to get back and see what's going on!" Kaito commanded.

…

Hiku and the rest of the rookies were waiting at the entrance of the base. The strange blonde woman who was called Corinne Martin also was waiting with them, not to mention a few trainers and many of the gym leaders. They were all waiting for Kasmir and the rescue party to come back.

Hiku was confused on a few things. First off, somehow Raquaza was killed, and yet Corinne Martin kept on saying that she had to lead this organization herself… what made this woman think she could be Raquaza? Secondly, who had wanted to kill Raquaza? Who in their right minds would do that? Why did Kasmir take off so suddenly after getting a hint of an idea of who might have done it? What Pokémon did he use to fly on? But most importantly, why weren't they back yet?

Vekra and Jaylon looked as confused as her. The only captain left at the base was Dragonite, and he was trying to do something to keep the peace and yet had no idea what to do.

"Do you think something bad has happened?" Hiku gulped. She instantly wished she hadn't said anything. Of course something bad had happened: Raquaza was dead!

"To Kasmir and the rescue party?" Jaylon asked. "I hope not, but the longer it takes for them to come back the more I worry…" he stopped talking and patted her shoulder. "It'll be ok, Hiku. It always turns out good in the end."

Vekra snorted quietly at his last statement. "Really, sometimes you can be as naïve as Kasmir."

"Irreverent person…" Jaylon huffed back. "He hasn't come back yet and I'm scared for him. He's friendly, and good luck."

"Good luck? How in the world can Kasmir be good luck?" Vekra snapped back.

"After I met him, I found my parents. Legendary Pokémon are good luck!" Jaylon retaliated in the argument.

"Um, what?" Hiku was more confused.

"Oh…" Jaylon shrugged. "I mean… nothing. If you don't know, then I'll let Kas-"

"He's a Pokémon." Vekra cut into Jaylon's stammering. "It's about time you knew that that friendly guy who helped your Pokémon evolve and saved your life is a Legendary Pokémon called Mewtwo." She couldn't stand ignorance and Hiku should know by now.

Hiku opened and closed her mouth several times, but no words came out. She was too confused to even try to understand this. Jaylon didn't say anything back, only shooting mental daggers at the snooty blonde.

Vekra continued staring at the sky, waiting for the arrival of the other captains. Caprico was watching more intently to see if his sister was alright. Rin seemed interested in the idea that Kasmir was a rare Pokémon.

A little cheer went up from the crowd, which was joined a second later by another voice. Soon the crowd was cheering as a speck of black on the horizon grew large and larger. Someone was coming back! There was a total of three flying Pokémon returning, each with a rider or two.

Jaylon smiled and began to join in with the cheering. The rescue party was coming back. They must have got out safely. Hopefully they got Uchiha as well. Caprico seemed the happiest he had ever been. Rin smiled and clapped.

The first Pokémon swooped close and hovered while the others kept their distance. The two riders on this Flygon, one wearing trainer attire and the other a man in a black suit, looked very confused. The man (Kaito) called out over the flapping of the Flygon's wings, "I need to talk to Raquaza."

Corinne Martin stepped forward and held back her blonde hair with one hand from the whipping wind. "I am Raquaza." She yelled back.

Kaito looked amused. "Right…"

"What happened?" Corinne asked.

"I want to know why all these people know about our rescue mission and about Kasmir." Kaito said in a still disbelieving voice.

"I'm afraid that I had to tell the trainers here about the mission. I must tell them more before this day is out…" she paused and asked with a slightly pained voice, "What happened to Kasmir?"

"He's a little wounded. He needs some medical help and he doesn't look 'himself' if you get my meaning. My Honchkrow can take him to the back entrance if you want his current 'form' to be unseen." The man replied.

Corinne understood the meaning. Kasmir was looking like a Mewtwo right now and he might not want the whole group of trainers to see him as his true Pokémon self. She gulped as she realized that Kasmir got hurt enough to not be able to hold up his human disguise. "Take him to the back. Thanks…"

"I tried to help as best I could… turns out that our traitor is packing heat." Kaito frowned, still slightly disbelieving that his leader who had kept her face secret for so long was now showing herself.

"I can always depend on you, Kaito…" Corinne said with a sad smile.

**A/N: I'm sorry for mind wanderings (PMD story and Pokémon Lecture)… I'm going to college very soon (Eeep!) and my updates will much less frequent. But I want to finish Fallen Trainers, I really do… and I'm so close… Must… Focus… **

**Anyways, thanks once more for reading, commenting, and favoring. And something I haven't done for a while…**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Pokémon. If I did own Pokémon, then the creatures wouldn't be as creatively designed and the main characters of the anime would be changed with every new season.**


	36. Chapter 36, Discussion

**Chapter 36**

Raquaza/Corinne Martin met with all the captains in the infirmary. All except Diego/'Garchomp' and the traitor Atri were present. Corinne sighed with anxiety. Even though she was prepared for tough times, she didn't want to do it without Hianna. But her Raquaza counterpart was no longer… It made her aggrieved to think about it.

"So, you heard what happened, so what does the un-helmeted Raquaza say?" Kaito said evenly. He still was sore about letting Raquaza have a face for everyone to see. The helmet seemed like a safety precaution and now Ms. Martin was throwing it away.

Kasmir, who was still in Mewtwo form and bandaged up a bit, sitting on a bed, waved his thick tail in the air. He had recovered enough to be in human guise, but the medic said that the guise didn't help him bandage and check on the bullet wounds. The Mewtwo didn't like it, but he stayed in his Pokémon form, surrounded by solemn captains.

"We can't try to capture Atri, that's for sure." She said, looking at Kasmir. "I don't want anyone getting hurt like that."

Kasmir put on a brave face. "Come on, I lived through many battles before, this is no big deal…"

"It's a big deal when someone nearly dies…" Corinne replied, and then tried to act more like a leader. "But now that Hianna is gone… I won't lie to you; I don't know what to do. I lost my brother a long time ago, and I don't want to lose any of you."

The captains nodded, and then Uchiha stepped forward. "I don't believe that I told you my story. I might be able to help in a decision."

"Yes, what happened to you and who hurt you?" DJ jumped to her side.

The blue haired woman sat down in the infirmary on a bed close to Kasmir's. She took a deep breath and said, "I was sent to find out more on this hidden foe that we were fighting against, and I fought out more than I imagined, but it cost me…

"I flew over on my Pidgeot and landed in Rota, then walked down the mountain range to Pewter city so I wouldn't be seen as an obvious trainer."

"You went to Rota? That's my birthplace." Kasmir said happily. His spirit was not crushed even after his wounds and near death experience.

"Yes." 'Latias' replied.

"Stop interrupting, Kasmir." Kaito sighed. "Please continue with your tale, Uchiha."

She gulped and continued. "Well, Pewter wasn't a very good town to be in. It was going through a near war with Pokémon. Pewter is a valley town surrounded by mountains and mountain Pokémon. The destruction was great, but that's everywhere in Kanto. Pewter didn't have much information on this evil I was looking for, so I wandered to Saffron, Kanto's capital. I figured that I'd find something there.

"Well, my hunch was right. I saw the broadcasts and heard the speeches that the president was giving about the current war against our Pokémon neighbors. Before I could find any solid proof that the Kanto democracy was failing and a dictator was rising up (aka, the President), I was found and captured. The men who were snatching trainers took me into a basement of some building and locked me up. I was stuck with my Pokémon for a day. That was when I wrote the letters and gave them to my Gengar and Pidgeot. I called them out of their Pokéball outside the door and they left to deliver the notes.

The rest of the captains were stunned. Hearing that Uchiha suspected the Kanto president to be the instigator… it somehow fit, and yet it was disgusting to accept.

"After that…" she continued hesitantly.

Kasmir felt inclined to chime in again, "We got the notes and Pokémon you sent. After you're done telling your story, you can see them again."

"Shut up, Mewtwo." Kaito held his fist above Kasmir's head threateningly.

Kasmir glared back, but kept his mouth closed.

"After that… I was kept there for a long time. I couldn't tell exactly how long. I had no idea what was going on outside my cell… Then the trainer-snatchers came for me. They took me to a room and tortured me to get information on the goings-on here…" the blue haired woman left off mournfully. "You saw that I finally caved in and told them about our secret operations. They were good at what they did. They killed my Pokémon in front of me…"

"They are Barbarians! This is an outrage!" Kasmir stood up despite his wounds. The injustice got his blood boiling.

"_Why_ would they do that?" Corinne tried to act like Hianna did when she was resolute.

"They hate Pokémon trainers… They think that Pokémon as companions is wrong, that humans should be above Pokémon. To them, we are demi-humans and they won't hesitate to kill us all." Uchiha was near tears. DJ leapt to her side, trying to comfort her.

"If they wouldn't hesitate to kill us all, then why'd they give you back?" Kaito said levelly.

"Because I was their enemy. My knowledge of what this organization kept me alive. And when they had heard enough, they gave a note to you captains saying where I was moved to. They wanted to do that so they could wire and bug the warehouse to see the others in my team… now if Flygon/Nicole, Kaito/'Salamence', or DJ tries to escape the regions, they will find you… an me…" She blubbered.

Corinne Martin sighed and rubbed her temples. "Then the chance of escape is low…"

"Not really, I can make myself look like anyone, I can confuse these guys." Kasmir clenched his three-fingered fist.

"You've had enough trouble with these guys; don't throw yourself into danger again, Kasmir." Corinne shook her head. "And I'm sure that Atri will tell them everything he picked up on." She sighed and said, "The only thing that he is wrong on is that he thinks he killed the one and only Raquaza. Can we use that to our advantage?"

**Sigh… I am dragging my feet through this ending. Thanks to everyone who really likes it, or at least pretends that they like it… **

**Fanfiction is a place to put up first drafts of a story and have other authors say what they like and don't like, and I'm grateful for feedback. **

**I will maybe make this longer, or just make the next chapter longer. If you haven't noticed, I'm writing PMD Explorers of Stupidity at the same time as this, and it's more fun to write for me.**


	37. Chapter 37, Hot Cocoa

**Chapter 37**

Jaylon, Vekra, and Hiku, joined by Rin and Caprico, were all standing together, trying to make sense of all of this.

"So there were two Raquazas, and one got killed? Now we've got a traitor running back to his boss and we all are doomed?" Hiku fretted.

"I already knew that there were two Raquaza's." Vekra, even during this time of confusion and terror, liked to act superior a little. "But why a traitor did sprout up in the first place is what I'd like to know. Atri was a captain, and a shy person at that. How could he turn around and kill his leader and side with people of genocide?" the blonde teen narrowed her eyes in thought.

"And Kasmir, what happened to him?" Jaylon liked the Legendary Pokémon possibly the most of the group. The brown haired boy sighed angrily. "It's almost like I called it that he would get hurt. And now the captains are having a meeting in the infirmary…"

"Stupid…" Vekra crossed her arms. "Caprico and I are captains but we aren't allowed in either."

Caprico clenched his hands tight. "I haven't seen my sister for the longest time… and now that she's here I can't even talk to her!" he ground out, clearly unhappy.

Rin nodded along with the conversation, everything that she was wondering about was already said, so why repeat it?

"It's as if it's the end…" Hiku muttered strangely. Her eyes lowered to the ground and she sighed. "Whatever Atri learned from here he will use to destroy us. We might be able to discover the unnamed opponent person, but can we really fight this evil? What if this way of living in the Pokémon world is slipping away?"

Jaylon wheeled on Hiku Turret and grabbed her shoulders. "No, you can't say things like that, Hiku!" He pleaded; "No matter what happens we can't give up!" he stepped back and called out his Combusken as if to prove his point. He continued in his plea, talking to each one of his friends in turn. "How can the world turn down such a companionship between creature and human?" he patted his starter Pokémon on the head, "Pokémon protect us from other Pokémon, and when we work together with them, we can create things better than by ourselves. Sure there might be instances where there is a corrupt trainer that only fights to win and cares nothing about their friends, but nothing is 100% good. We trainers are in the right by treating Pokémon with respect and love. We can't give in to these guys just because they have numbers and power and influence on their side. They are in the wrong, and we can't back down."

"If we listen to you, we'll all die." Vekra glared at Jaylon. "Look, it's better to be alive than to die for something that might be right. I mean, I don't even understand if this opposing way has for motivation, so who am I to know that our side is right?"

Hiku called out her Mudkip and hugged him to her chest. "Oh Nano, I'm so scared…"

Jaylon broke off from his glare at Vekra and made a sympathetic face at his friend.

"My sister will know what to do." Caprico, the youngest in the group, said, "She just got rescued, so she can tell Raquaza all about what happened and how to get these guys!" he seemed angry and confident.

Rin sighed and clasped her hands together. "So, what should we do?" she looked around the circle of rookies. "If it came to the decision… would you run or stay?"

Jaylon crossed his arms and smiled at his Combusken. "We could totally stay, huh, Hearth? I think we could even show up at the HQ and talk them out of this trainer onslaught by showing them our friendship." His Combusken didn't look as confident.

"I'd take off." Vekra seemed to choose the opposite just to spite Jaylon. "Ever Grande City could welcome me back well. Hoenn is better off anyways."

The blue-haired boy looked uneasy. "I'd go wherever my sister went. I became part of this place only to get her back."

Hiku continued to hug her Mudkip and rock back and forth. She didn't answer.

Rin waited a while and expressed her own opinion, "I've heard Unova is un-touched by this trainer-snatchings…" she left off and shrugged.

Jaylon sighed and went up to Hiku. He removed Nano from her hands, put the little Pokémon her shoulder, and hugged her instead. The two hugged for a long time, Hiku almost breaking into tears from fear and confusion. The rookies fell silent, not knowing what to do anymore. This whole thing seemed so inescapable. What could they do to change the fate of this place? Nothing, they could only stand around and cry. Raquaza and her captains would do everything and they all would have to help the best they could.

Out of the crowd of trainer who were still standing outside came Milo, the friendly scientist. The brown-haired man beckoned to them. "Come back inside, I'll make some hot chocolate for you." He pushed his glasses back up his nose, but not in a geeky manner.

Jaylon released his hug on Hiku and the rookies all followed the kind scientist inside. Milo led them to his office and seated them all down at a spare table and grabbed a few extra chairs. The man then put some mugs of water in the microwave to heat them up.

"Mr. Milo…" Hiku asked quietly. "Why is this happening? And why are we involved?"

The man laughed grimly. "How would I know? Sometimes, God has different plans than what we have. He gave me a whirlwind of an adventure, but took away my Lucario. I guess he wanted you guys to be chosen to join Raquaza as trainers."

"But why us?" Hiku pleaded. "Why not my brother Weyler or someone else my age in the whole Pokémon world?"

The scientist shrugged. "It was Raquaza's choice of who would be chosen. Maybe you can ask her." He opened the microwave after the small ding and handed each of them a cup of hot water, a packet of cocoa mix, and a spoon.

Jaylon took his cocoa and stirred it. He glanced over at Hiku and asked the scientist, "What can we do now?" His prior gusto was gone, replaced with care for Hiku.

"Raquaza is discussing that right now." Milo Bertram sighed and sipped his hot cup of cocoa. "It sounded like Kasmir got hurt enough to lose power to keep up his human form, so this is very serious…" he mused and put the cup on his desk, his glasses slightly fogged up by the steam.

"What?" Rin and Caprico, who were still out of the loop, and Hiku asked.

"Yeah, all the secrets are going to start spilling out after this murder." Vekra rolled her eyes at the less attuned rookies.

"I'll explain Kasmir later," Milo waved his hand and picked up the mug again.

Rin nodded, accepting his word. "Thanks for the hot chocolate. But why'd you do this for us? We are just rookies to you."

Milo smiled kindly to the five trainers. "I think that you are all special. And since you aren't sure of what's going on, I'd think a friendly act would help you."

An announcement went over the loudspeakers. The summons to a meeting rang through the entire base. "All trainers, gym leaders, and employees of Raquaza are called to a meeting in the large auditorium. No exceptions will be allowed to missing this gathering. This will determine the fate of our cause." The speakers buzzed with the voice of Kaito.

"I suppose this is where we get the answers…" Vekra stood up and set her unfinished cup on the table. This was going to be a turning point in her life as a trainer. But she wasn't going to let all of her training from the last week go to waste, the very least she could do was fight these crooks that tried to kill Hiku and had been a threat to the Pokémon world. "And even if Raquaza says that we will all flee, I'll kick a few butts in the process."

Rin stood up, ready to go. She looked nervous but didn't want to bother the others with her thoughts. Besides, she couldn't even form them into words.

The five rookies and Milo all walked as a group to hear what their fearless leader would have to say.

**I'm going to make the chapters shorter, but that's ok, because it's close to ending… I'm getting a little more motivation for this, so just hang in with me. Thanks for still reading and reviewing. It means a lot to me.**


	38. Chapter 38, the Vote

**Chapter 38**

"Hello everyone," the speech inside the packed auditorium started with these words. Corinne Martin, wearing the Raquaza dress but not the helmet, sent a grim glance around the people gathered. It hit her that this amount of people was large than she had expected when first starting this. She tried to not act overwhelmed for their support. "If you don't have knowledge of what was happened today, I will inform you…"

She went on to describe the death of her friend Hianna, who acted as a fellow Raquaza figure and had created the organization with her. Corinne Martin tried very hard not to cry in front of all these people, to act strong in the face of tragedy.

"This traitor, Atri Tems, escaped from the rescue team in charge of recovering Codename 'Latias'. I fear that even now he is traveling to undo us all." She paused, letting this news sink into the public's psyche. "So, there are only two choices I can see for this organization that you have joined… One is to disband and flee, and the other is to stand up for what we believe and be hunted down by the region's government."

A stunned silence followed this announcement. There was nothing to do to soothe the public's worries; this was the plain and simple truth. "I have not personally decided on this. I feel that it is more fitting that the people who are involved in this organization should be in charge of that. I will have ballots placed around the base and you are free to vote your opinion." She looked down and said, "And that is all I can say. Once the votes have been taken, then I, Corinne Martin, will lead you the way you chose. Thank you for your time."

…

The five rookies gathered together again, as if feeling that their newness to this whole group of people working for a just cause was reason enough to hang together.

Hiku clasped her hands together and glanced over at the line of trainers of every age, size, and experience. They were waiting to sign a ballot to what would become of this, and what their future would be like. It felt so real and terrifying that a checked box could change her life one way or another. She was too confused and scared to know what side she would chose.

"Is there only two choices?" Vekra said, once again showing her general attitude to Raquaza's rules. "I mean, can't we try to escape to Unova? That would be better in my opinion than to fight or flee to some uncharted place?"

Rin nodded, but didn't say anything.

"I can't decide what to put down until I hear it from my Pokémon." Jaylon announced and withdrew his four Pokémon holding devices. They all opened and his four Pokémon emerged on the floor. Rain the Zangoose sat down with a huff while Hearth the Combusken chirped happily and jumped to his side. Dooma the Ninjask hovered in the air passively and Oan the Swallot looked sound asleep. The brown haired boy with a bandana around his head bent down to be at eye-level with most of his Pokémon.

Rin thought this was a good idea and also called out her three Pokémon. Soon all the five rookies released the Pokémon from their confines. The Pokémon called greetings to each other, unaware at first the sour emotions coming from the humans.

Akama the Kirlia, being the emotion Pokémon, was first to feel it and she began to quiet down the others. Oan was only too happy to obey Akama. Soon the 18 Pokémon became silent in their calls and they stared at their trainers.

Vekra addressed the Pokémon in a serious tone, "Things aren't looking up for us here. It's come to a situation where we either stay and fight, possibly die, and the other choice is the flee with embarrassment. We trainers don't want to decide without a Pokémon's idea of what should go on. You understand?"

The Pokémon began to chatter once more, either they were concerned about the thing Vekra told them, or they had a short attention span.

"Which ever Pokémon wants to flee comes by me, and any Pokémon that wants to stay and fight goes by Jaylon. Does that work?" Rin asked the Pokémon and Trainers at the same time.

The muttering between the Pokémon continued and Rin thought that she had not been heard. But then Hearth the Combusken sent a look to Rin, then to Jaylon, and then the yellow chicken Pokémon scampered to Jaylon's side. Soon the other Pokémon began to choose for themselves.

Nano the Mudkip walked over to Rin's side and Zuni the Grovyle glanced a little before choosing Jaylon's side. The sides formed, Rin's side gained Lee the Buizel, Taynee the Sneasel, Akama the Kirlia, Oan the Swallot (who looked like he chose a side more to be by the Kirlia), Tamaki the Breloom, Cancer the Slowbro, Dooma the Ninjask, and Wingull.

Jaylon's side gained Rain the Zangoose, Frost the Riolu, Beldum, Trapinch, Pieces and Gemini the Zangeese (who might have chosen to side with the older Zangoose), and Virgo the Leafeon.

The Pokémon tally was 9 for fighting and 9 for fleeing; a hung jury.

Vekra rolled her eyes. "Well, that doesn't help does it? Our Pokémon majority can't even decide. If only we had one more Pokémon between us, we could make a choice."

The five trainers seemed at a loss once again. "Maybe we five should just vote what we think is best." Rin suggested.

"What if whoever votes to stay and fight actually does while the rest flee?" Hiku thought out loud. "I don't know about you guys, but I want to have the five of us stay together."

"That couldn't be. It's a majority rules, right?" Vekra retorted.

Hiku pulled on her black hair nervously and pointed to a sign by the ballot box. "It says that the organization might split unless there is an overwhelming majority…" the other young trainers turned and saw that this was true. Hiku Turret continued, "If we do vote different ways, that means that we might never see each other again… And I like you guys a lot."

Rin nodded, showing her understanding but still keeping to herself that her choice had already been made.

Caprico still didn't know what to think. He needed to talk with his sister and choose what she chose.

Vekra sighed and massaged her temples.

Jaylon looked down at the Pokémon gathered by him. These were the Pokémon that wanted to stand up for themselves. They weren't afraid. But if he chose to flee, wasn't that being cruel to the fighters?

"If you need a tie breaker, I'll volunteer." A solemn voice said from Jaylon's back.

The brown haired Hoenn boy turned and saw the purple-eyed Mewtwo in human form. Jaylon cracked a smile and felt an urge to hug him, but held back. "Kasmir! You're alright!" he cried happily. The rookies all greeted the Mewtwo in turn.

Kasmir looked a little embarrassed to be important to these young trainers, but he kept his voice even to show his seriousness of the situation. "Yeah, I survived… I didn't catch him though… I wasn't expecting him to fire on me, but that doesn't matter." He walked through the circle of trainers and stood by Rin and the other Pokémon favoring running away. "As a Pokémon and tie breaker, I take the side of fleeing."

Caprico, Rin and Hiku still looked confused on the matter, but held their tongues.

"This force is unlike anything I've ever encountered before, and I don' think we can take them… Sometimes it can be considered brave when one flees." Kasmir spoke softly.

"So, all five of us will vote for running?" Rin asked cautiously.

The others spent some time in silence, thinking through the possibilities of what they were turning their backs on. If they chose to flee, then the government of Kanto and Johto would let Pokémon poaching to be signed on. The downfall of trainer-kind would go unopposed. But could they really do anything against this political influence?

"I'll run." Hiku admitted. "They almost killed me, and I don't have the courage to try to fight them…"

"I'll run." Jaylon nodded.

"I'll run, because they did horrible things to my sister. I want to show them that they were being mean, but I don't have a chance…" Caprico added.

Vekra sighed with a hint of anger. "And I guess I'll join you guys."

Kasmir nodded and walked off to some different area of the base, his work done here with the trainers.

…

That night, Jaylon sat with his Pokémon in one of the training rooms. It was about midnight, and most people were in bed. But the rookie couldn't find it in himself to stop thinking about this decision and this new way of life he voted for.

He petted Hearth, his handy starter Pokémon. She had been his very first Pokémon, followed by Dooma the Ninjask. Hearth was a good little chicken, loyal and loving. She was there when he thought he was over-with in Fallabor town. She had done her very best in everything she did. The little chicken had given 110% every time, all the time, and he was grateful for that. He couldn't have asked for a better Pokémon.

He looked at his flying bug Dooma. She had been an ugly little Nincada in the beginning, but she worked hard without a hint of emotion. Sure she lost lots of battles, but she was unique to the team. Dooma had helped in defeating their first Pokémon in battle, a Golem. She had been wounded by Vekra's Trapinch back in Mauville, and only then did Jaylon realize that even though she wasn't the best Pokémon, he would be the best for this serious Pokémon, and try to help her win and defeat the under-dog inside her.

Then there was Oan, his very first Pokémon caught in the wild and his only male Pokémon. He was an adorable lazy blob that seemed to be a little dull. But you always have to love the stupid ones, because they were the ones who were the least contaminated by bitter emotions. Oan fought pretty well, and had some loyalty to his name, and he was now an evolved Pokémon; a Swallot.

And Rain, the Pokémon that his parents had left for him to be a sort of hidden message to find them. She was stubborn and sarcastic, but she had grown used to Jaylon a lot since he had first captured her. She signified to him the reality of wild Pokémon who had a life before getting snatched up by a trainer. And no matter what kind of insults she threw is way, he still loved the Zangoose. She had a fighting spirit that couldn't be compared to most Pokémon.

As he sat there, thinking about his Pokémon, he sighed in the prospect of the future. What if fleeing meant that he could never train Pokémon; he would have to let them go back to the wild. Where would he go, and would he be able to care for them after he moved to this new place?

"If this running thing ends up to be a bad idea, would it be better if I just let you four live in Mt. Silver?" he asked his Pokémon in the gloomy dirt-floored arena.

"Comb!" Hearth protested, her voice said a negative.

"Swall…" Oan looked so cutely unaware.

"Nin…" Dooma was hard to read what she thought.

"Zan Zangoose goose [What does Mt. Silver have?]" rain asked sarcastically, as if she didn't see any use in staying in a mountain.

"You mean, that no matter where I go, you guys don't want to get out and live here peacefully? What if..." the boy sighed at the pure uncertainty of it all. It was frustrating.

"Busken, busken Comb-comb Combusken." Hearth said with confidence.

"Goose-goose Zan Zangoose Zangoose-goose [speak for yourself, foul.]" Rain hissed.

"What'd she say?" Jaylon asked his Zangoose.

"Zangoose Zan goose-goose, Zan goose Zan Zangoose Zan-Zangoose [She said that she'd go to the ends of the Pokémon world for you, but not all of us feel that way…]"

The boy smiled at his Zangoose. "Then what do you think?"

"Goose-oose Zangoose Zan, Zan, Zan, Zangoose [I'd much rather fight, but you need to run, I can't think of anywhere to go…]"

Jaylon patted his Zangoose's head affectionately. "Thanks, Rain." Somehow, he felt better about the whole thing now. His Pokémon would back him up, because they were a unique sort of family. He was the head, watching over and caring for these Pokémon. And in turn, they would battle to earn his favors and would back him up… he felt suddenly emotional. "Thanks you guys… a trainer couldn't ask for better Pokémon…"

"Comb… Combusken comb." Hearth prodded him.

"Zangoose Zangoose Zan [she said get to bed.]" Rain sighed and yawned in a cutesy cat-like manner.

"Ok, thanks you guys again, for everything. I wish this journey could have been different, but it has been great with guys…" Jaylon wiped his eyes and stood to his feet. His butt hurt from sitting on the hard dirt floor, but he did it to himself. He couldn't complain. He called all his Pokémon except Hearth back to their Pokéballs, and then walked back to his room, his starter Pokémon at his side.

**I'm going to finish it! I will try to finish it in two chapters! (It should end by chap 40) **

**Thanks for the comments, and mainly to Mikayla. That comment made me want to finish the story. I will finish this, mainly because now that I had a little time away from it, I've been able to come back with a new perspective and possibly better writing.**


	39. Chapter 39, Flight

**I know its super long, but it's almost the last chapter. I apologize once again for taking so long on this story. It's almost a year old conception-ally wise. Enjoy…**

**Chapter 39**

Jaylon awoke with a bang. Literally.

An explosion of sound brought him jolting out of bed and reaching for Hearth's Pokéball. His room was dark and he gazed around in confusion at what had made to loud sound. He looked at the little alarm clock on his nightstand and saw that it was two o'clock. And he had only gotten to sleep around midnight!

He mumbled grumpily to himself and sank back into the covers of his bed. Well, it was an apartment room of sorts that had been his room for a while. It wasn't like his room back in Mauville… he sighed sadly. Was he ever going to see his home again? His Uncle Jerry, Aunt Linda, cousins Mike and Ana, and parents Judy and Hector Wicklow were all in this base. His home was now going to be with them. But what if my friends go somewhere else? I'm old enough to be on my own, and yet, I love my family… I found my super smart parents and everything was supposed to get better…

Just as sleep was going to welcome him back, something shook him.

"What is wrong with you? It's two in the morning!" he shouted irritably.

"And if you don't get your stuff together, you won't live to see four in the morning." The voice of Kasmir replied in hushed undertones.

The rookie trainer sat up, knocking heads once more with the Mewtwo. Both cried out at the sudden pain.

"Ow!" Jaylon complained and rubbed his head. "What is wrong with you?"

"I should stop leaning over you when waking you up…" Kasmir groaned. "But that's not the point. You have to get your stuff, all the essentials, now!"

"Can you care to explain what the heck is up with you?" Jaylon let out a yawn part-way through his sentence.

Kasmir flicked on the light switch (which wasn't within reaching range, so he must've done it with his psychic powers) and began to pace across the room, looking for something. He found it and picked it up from a secret refrigerator in the floor. It was a can of some sort of energy drink that had way too much sugar than could be good for you. "Drink this, wake up, and get your stuff." The Mewtwo in human form pushed the can of pure sugar at Jaylon.

The boy frowned. "And why?"

Kasmir threw down his hands in frustration. "Can't you tell? Atri fled the scene after I fought him. He ran back to his friends and has sent a full-blown army to exterminate us! That's why we need to get out now while there is still time!"

Jaylon's eyes widened and he gulped down the energy drink quickly. "You could have said that the army was coming." He stammered and began to grab his Pokémon gear and memorabilia into his trainer's satchel.

"Ok, I'm going to get the other rookies trainers up. You get your family and get them ready to get out and fast!" the Mewtwo shouted as he began to exit.

"What if my family wants to fight?" Jaylon yelled.

Kasmir stopped running and said gravely, "I've seen their numbers. Any fight against them would be suicide. Running is now our only option!" he cried and ran down the halls.

_Wait, how'd Kasmir get in my room in the first place?_ Jaylon suddenly thought in alarm.

…

Within an hour, most of the base was alerted and woken up, well, as woken up as one could be in three in the morning. Vekra rubbed her eyes and tried not to be tired. After all, this was war! And yet… why at this hour? Didn't the enemies have to sleep to?

The blonde was a wreck. It usually took her around two hours if not more to look presentable for the day. Today she only had thirty minutes. As a result, she wore no makeup, her hair was in a huge clump of blondeness, and her breathe was rank. At least she had chosen nice clothes to wear. Vekra Ashcroft glared at the others and hoped that they wouldn't be mortified at her appearance.

Hiku suddenly bumped into Vekra. The black-haired girl looked much better than Vekra herself, with sleepy eyes, straight hair hidden under a Mudkip hat, and a cute white blouse coupled with a skirt and leggings. Nano the Mudkip sat on her shoulder and poked her head to see if the Mudkip hat would randomly chirp at him. Hiku patted her Mudkip on the head fin to try to make him stop before getting a headache. Then she looked at Vekra and smiled, "Morning," she said quietly.

Vekra croaked a "morning" back. She was a little grouchy at this whole 'waking up early to run for your lives' thing, not to mention that she had had a very small shower and still felt grimy. "Do you feel like crap?" she asked, still half-asleep.

Hiku smiled, "Yup!" then she gave a little laugh. "And you?"

"If you couldn't tell already by the appearance, I feel like crap…" the blonde ground out but was a little happier because Hiku was.

"There you guys are. I was looking through the crowd to see if you were awake." Rin joined the conversation. She looked awake and almost too cheerful for Vekra's liking. Her neck-length blonde curly hair was combed and covered by a fedora and she wore a comfortable t-shirt and jeans. "Crazy morning huh?"

"You a morning person?" Vekra glowered at the girl. They were the same age, but Vekra felt herself a little superior due to her sense of fashion taste. Rin had very little.

"When I get to bed on time, yes. I used to wake up early every morning before school to read a book by the fireplace…" Rin hugged her jacket closer. "I kind of wish I had a fireplace right now."

"Crazy morning person…" Vekra mumbled and played around with her messy hair. She thought about asking for a hat so that when Jaylon came to their group, he wouldn't laugh at Vekra's bedraggled look. "Hiku, could I borrow a hat?" the Hoenn trainer asked.

The black-haired girl nodded sleepily and reached into her bag, nearly tipping Nano from her shoulder to the ground. She held out two knit hats that looked like they were meant for winter. One was white with red spots, and the other looked like a pink cat. "Do you want a Spinda or Skitty hat?" Nano scrambled around on Hiku until he perched on her head on top of the Mudkip hat, making it look like Hiku had a totem pole hat.

Rin smiled widely. "Oh, those are so cute!" she exclaimed.

Vekra looked at the hats and frowned. They looked way too childish for her tastes. But she got over it quickly and mumbled, "I'll take the Spinda… I feel like one right now anyways." It was kind of nice to see her native Pokémon again. After all this time in Johto surrounded by foreign trainers that had strange Pokémon, a taste of Hoenn was welcome. She donned the hat and tried to forget about the childish look it brought her.

"Do you know where Jaylon and Caprico are?" Rin looked around the crowd of sleepy people waiting for an explanation. Trainers, gym leaders, and captains all alike were standing in the lobby. Some of the less concerned were sitting down on the ground and taking naps. Kasmir was not present, probably talking with Corinne Martin, the only Raquaza. The Sinnohan girl sent out her Riolu Frost. She addressed her still disobedient Pokémon, "Hey Frost, can you find Jaylon and Rain for us?"

"Why do we need to get him in the first place?" Vekra mumbled irritably. "He's got family to be with, he can leave us well-enough alone."

Rin nodded. "I see your point. Ok, new plan…" she turned back to her Pokémon but found that he wasn't there anymore. "Curses, I should have thought that the mention of Rain would send him running…" she admitted to herself.

Hiku grinned. "You Sinnoh people have such weird slang…"

Rin shrugged, "'Curses' is more of my word…"

"Hey, Hiku," Vekra asked pointedly, "Where's your family? Are they up?"

The girl nodded, sending the two Mudkips (real and hat version) gripping on to her head. "Yeah, mom, dad, and Weyler are around somewhere… maybe we should stand by them." She nodded to herself. "Yes, that would make me feel a little better…"

"KIP! Mud mud-MUD!" Nano cried out from the numerous noddings.

"Sorry little guy…" Hiku lifted him off her head and cradled him instead.

The three girls walked through the crowd together, the trainers and gym leaders paying little attention to them. Hiku found her family in the crowd, ran up, and hugged her mother.

Mrs. Turret hugged her girl back tightly. "Oh my dear," she said affectionately. Her Medicham greeted Nano the Mudkip, who was unfortunately squeezed between Hiku and her mother.

"Kip Mudkip!" Nano complained and squirmed against Hiku's chest.

"I'm sorry again, little guy. Maybe your Pokéball would be best…" the black-haired girl apologized and called her starter Pokémon back.

Mrs. Turret smiled at her daughter. "I still can't believe that you've grown so much. My own daughter became a Pokémon trainer… But now it doesn't matter. We all are going to run to a haven…"

Hiku's twin brother, who was showing black hair at the roots but still had the ends of his hair bleached white, pushed his glasses up his nose. "I hope this brief time as a Pokémon trainer was worth it, sis…"

Hiku nodded firmly. "I wouldn't have done it any other way! I got Nano, Akama, and Tamaki form this trip, not to mention some amazing friends."

Rin smiled in the background, not wanting to interrupt the family moment. Vekra was feeling drowsy again and wanted to pretend that this early morning evacuation was only a drill.

"Everyone!" the voice of Corinne/Raquaza rang out over the tired mutterings of the crowd. The sleepers jolted awake and grudgingly stood to their feet.

Rin looked around the crowd for her Riolu, but Frost was yet to be found. "Where could he be and why hasn't he come back?" Rin muttered to herself, and then turned her attention to Raquaza standing among them.

…

Caprico felt awful. His dear sister, the one who had looked after him all the time his parents were away, the one who taught him about Pokémon and gave him Pieces and Gemini, was a complete wreck. She had come on the back of DJ's Staraptor, completely in ruins. She wasn't herself and Caprico barely recognized his own sister. And the small amount of time he had talked with her yesterday wasn't nearly enough.

Now here he was, the next day, standing in the cool lobby surrounded by strangers that were wakened with terrible news. The blue haired boy felt like crying and throwing a temper at the same time. He wanted to try to help his poor sister, and yet at the same time wanted to make those evil men pay. But even with this urge, he had voted to flee with his rookie friends. Was that the right choice?

"Everyone!" the now familiar voice of Raquaza called everyone's attention. The blue haired boy wished he could find friends to stand by, but he couldn't see anyone familiar through the see of faces and bodies. He was too short to look over the crowd, being the preteen he was. he sighed and looked in the direction he thought Raquaza would be standing.

"Rio." A small blue paw grabbed his shirt and suddenly pulled the boy to his right.

"What?" the rookie complained as he looked at the little blue Riolu.

"Lu Riolu." Frost glared and tugged him to the right again.

Caprico didn't like Frost. He wasn't a very friendly Pokémon and his poor Zangeese had suffered many an injury from this single Pokémon. Even with that in mind, he followed the Pokémon through the crowd to see if he would lead him to Rin. The blue-haired boy was mistaken; Frost the Riolu had lead him instead to Jaylon, his Zangoose Rain, and his family.

"Come by us." Jaylon waved him over in a friendly manner, but his voice was low.

Caprico wondered about why Frost had fetched him instead of Rain the Zangoose, but didn't think any more about it as their leader continued to talk.

"I am very sorry to have let you down…" Raquaza's voice fell in volume, showing her emotion. "But Kasmir has warned of an army of people heading this way. There is no doubt that the spy told them about our location and wanted to catch us off-guard. I'm afraid that now is the time to fly or fight. I want you all to be safe, but I won't prevent you from staying and fighting."

Caprico couldn't believe this. Jaylon on the other hand seemed to know that an army was heading their way. He couldn't begin to form a question to Jaylon describing his fears and the terror that awaited them.

The crowd around him seemed to be just as upset and some cries of anger drifted up from the more alert.

"We have a wide storage of Pokémon in this base. I have already taken the bare minimum I need. If you who want to fight wish, you can use the trained Pokémon in the computer systems. To the rest of you fleeing, I will hold a short gathering in the training auditorium handing out flying and psychic Pokémon with which to escape with. Our haven is Iron Island in Sinnoh, where we are guaranteed to be safe." Raquaza said. "All psychic Pokémon will be used first to prevent aerial assaults on the flying Pokémon."

Caprico gulped and whispered to his friend, "Should we go as quickly as we can?"

"Nah, I'll stay back a little, and then maybe all of us rookies can teleport or what not together. My family might go before us…" the Hoenn boy said confidently.

"Jaylon, we are not leaving without you!" Jaylon's Aunt Linda said in a louder voice.

"Let him go, he wants to be with his friends…" Jaylon's father Hector smiled at patted Jaylon's head.

"You just left him with us in Mauville, how dare you call yourself a father? You have no say in what he does now; you turned him over to us." Linda raged back.

Caprico felt nervous at listening to a family feud. He looked back through the crowd and saw that many people were leaving to go somewhere. The meeting must have ended. Caprico yawned and rubbed his eyes again. He looked down at Frost the Riolu wagging his tail by Rain the Zangoose. _Is this why you aren't with Rin?_ He thought to the Riolu.

Jaylon looked a little confused over the sudden family quarrel, but understood their grounds. After all, he had been pretty much raised by his aunt and uncle. What did it mean now about his parents taking care of him now? Wasn't ha a Pokémon trainer and legally on his own? But no, training Pokémon wouldn't be legal…

Jaylon's mother Judy sighed and tried arguing with her sister-in-law. "I'm very sorry the way it all happened, but Hector and I couldn't watch over him while working on our sciences here…"

"Then you should have quit!" Linda shot back. Her husband stood back out of the conversation, but it was clear that he agreed with her. Ana and Mike clung to their parents, confused by this sudden anger.

Jaylon's mom tried to apologize but was cut off by her husband Hector, "He's a full-grown boy now. You've raised him nice, and we are glad. But if he wants to leave with his friends, I say let him. It doesn't matter right now; danger is at our doorstep, sis."

Linda stomped off. Uncle Jerry was flustered by the sudden leaving and followed his wife in the direction of the auditorium to get teleported away.

"I'm sorry that all of that had to happen…" Judy apologized to her son by hugging him close. "It's hard to explain why we did what we did…"

Jaylon laughed a little. "I don't care about that, I just love you guys. Sure I would've liked to know you guys when I was younger, but as long as I'm with you now, I don't feel so bad…"

Hector and Judy looked surprised, but then warmed up and hugged their boy even harder.

Caprico leaned forward and held out his hand to pet Rain's head. The Zangoose, in a good mood, purred and pushed her head into Caprico's hand. Frost the Riolu eyed Caprico with a hint of distaste.

The boy smiled to try to soothe the tension. "You two are good Pokémon…" he said comfortingly. "You only seem to do your best when the other is present. Are you two that close already?"

"Rio." Frost barked an affirmative.

"Zangoose Zan-Zan." Rain said, still purring and rubbing her head against Caprico's hand.

Jaylon looked down at his Pokémon with a confused expression. "What? Why'd you say that?"

"What did she say?" the boy looked at the other trainer.

The Hoenner frowned in reply. "She said that she'd rather be Rin's. Really, I think I'm a good trainer…"

His parents looked once again pleased that the translating worked very well. Judy spoke, "I'm sure you are, honey." She looked to her husband and held his hand. "If you want to stay back a little, we will let you stay with your friends. Just be sure you don't get into the upcoming fight." Judy waved with her other hand and walked off with Hector.

Jaylon waved back to her, "Ok, no prob, mom!" he shook his head at Caprico and inclined his head toward his Zangoose. "Rain likes me… I'm a good trainer…"

"Goose."

"Am too!"

"Goose goose."

"I certainly am too!"

Caprico smiled nervously. "Shouldn't we find Rin, Vekra, and Hiku then?" It would be better than listening trainer and Pokémon arguing.

Jaylon corrected himself and agreed. "Sure. Come on, Frost, let's go find your trainer."

"Lu…" Frost rolled his red eyes and reluctantly started walking towards where Caprico imagined would be where the girls would be.

…

"The people are lining up to be teleported, should we join them?" Rin observed.

Vekra huffed. "Why can't the psychic Pokémon take all of us instead of a person or two at a time? The evacuation would go a lot smoother that way."

"Kasmir might know." Rin added. She raised her shoulders in a shrug. "He is a psychic Pokémon after all."

"Just wrong…" the Hoenner refused to cheer up.

Hiku tried to cheer up her teammate. "Come on, Vekra, we should get out of here. I don't want to be around when the fight comes to the doors."

The girl in the Spinda hat sighed and said, "Rin, why hasn't your Riolu come back? I'd hate to leave without him." she said this with a hint of sarcasm. After fighting the Pokémon, she had grown a dislike for the Riolu, along with all of the other trainers.

"Yeah," the Sinnohan began to scan the crowd again for the short little irritable Riolu. What if he ran away, or even wanted to hang around Jaylon for Rain? She hated to think of it, but Frost wasn't ever going to accept her as a trainer. What if Jaylon and she went different ways? No, they were all going to Iron Island… but what about Unova? It felt much too short of a time to give up on the way of a trainer because of a political uprising.

The Riolu showed up with Rain the Zangoose, Jaylon, and Caprico. Hiku smiled despite her sleepiness and hugged Jaylon.

"I guess today's my huggy day…" Jaylon blushed.

"What a day to be happy. We are all running away, tails between our legs and destined to live in a little hovel of an island all you can think of is the fact that you get hugs?" the blonde trainer with the Spinda hat glared at the brown-haired boy.

Caprico, despite his prior emotionless state, tried to cheer up Vekra despite himself. "This day could use a little happiness…"

The lobby was empty now; even some of the Gym Leaders seemed ready to flee. The few trainers that felt strong enough to face this army (Kaito included) had gone to collect extra Pokémon to direct. The five rookies that had been through so much stood together.

Rin, filled with slight nostalgia, admitted softly. "It ends like this then…"

The black-haired girl with the Mudkip hat nodded. "It was a great journey. Like I said before, I wouldn't give up my Pokémon, even if not taking the Pokémon in the first place had kept me safer. I love my Pokémon and can't imagine life without them or my trainer friends…"

Vekra frowned. Jaylon patted his Zangoose sadly. Caprico looked down at his feet. They stood again in silence.

"Well, should we go now?" Rin asked.

"Yes. We will somehow cope in Iron Island…" Hiku said positively.

Together, they walked to the group of people waiting for the chance to escape. They had all of their possessions on them, though this place that had been their home for around a week was hard to leave.

…

Kaito wasn't afraid of fighting off an army of armed people. He had faith in his Pokémon. It was kind of weird to think that he would have to order his Pokémon to attack other people. And yet, wasn't it back in ancient days that Pokémon always fought against people?

Salamence/Kaito called up his little Pikachu. "Pika!" the female Pikachu said, almost sounding like a battle cry. She turned to Kaito, searching his face, as if learning what the battle plans were according to his expression.

"This fight will be against people and guns, Anobe." Kaito said and patted the electric mouse on the head. "I borrowed a few other Pokémon to fight with and I need you to win their loyalty if they don't listen. Ok?"

"Chu-chu Pika." The Pikachu nodded.

Kaito was pleased by the lack of confusion. If his lead Pokémon understood what was going on, the rest would fall in line.

Anobe the Pikachu suddenly perked up her black-tipped ears and let a few sparks fall from her cheeks. "Pika pi!" she growled and crouched down, hunching her back.

"What…?" Kaito grimaced and held out more Pokéballs to call out more of his fighters. Six more flashes of light revealed his team of seven Pokémon: a Sceptile, Dusknoir, Monferno, Floatzel, Metagross, and Honchkrow. He then pulled out a few extra Pokéballs that contained fighters from the base itself. These Pokémon were Hariyama, Ludicolo, Mamoswine, and Donphan. The man looked through the crowd of Pokémon for his Pikachu to see what she had sensed. "I thought Kasmir said they were still a long ways off…" he grumbled angrily. He trusted his own Pokémon more than he did the Mewtwo.

The Pokémon looked around, searching for a battle. Kaito's Monferno smiled and decided to introduce herself to the new male Pokémon. Kaito's Dusknoir, which was female, began to talk gloomily to the Sceptile. The Floatzel stood like a Zen master, calmly waiting and not showing any emotion. The Metagross remained staring along with the Pikachu, using its psychic powers to predict where the humans were. The Honckrow (who was called Darcen) huffed arrogantly at the new Pokémon. The hariyama, Ludicolo, Mamoswine, and Donphan didn't show as much personality and only waited for orders.

"Chu-chu pika pi." Anobe growled. Kaito didn't know what his Pokémon was saying word for word, but he could guess what she was saying.

"They are here?" he gulped. "Anobe, run back to Raquaza and tell her and all the rest of the people. They have to get out if they don't want to fight."

The Pikachu looked sad to be separated from her trainer (or maybe it was miss out on the fight), but ran off anyways.

"Are they really here?" another brave trainer that had wanted to fight asked Kaito. He had his team of Pokémon out around him as well, mainly all Johto Pokémon.

"Yeah, just make sure that we strike first. They have bullets, so long-range specials will be the best tactic, got it noob?"

The other trainer frowned. "I'm no noob."

"Look, everyone's a noob compared to me. But that doesn't matter. Unless you want to die here, we and the rest of the fighters here should devise a retreat signal. What Pokémon do you have?" Salamence/Kaito asked.

"Meganium, Umbreon, Ampharos, Gyrados, Magmar, and Smeargle." The trainer counted off the Pokémon around him.

"Good, for us guarding this entrance, our escape signal will be an electric attack to the ceiling or something, got it?" Kaito replied and glanced to make sure his Pikachu was delivering the message.

…

Anobe the Pikachu dashed as fast as she could. She knew the situation and wasn't the one to take things lightly. She poured some of her electric energy into making herself faster. The lobby was pretty big for a Pokémon of her small size. She slowed a little as she approached a mass of people. If she wasn't careful, she could be stepped on.

The Pikachu wondered who she would talk to. Quickly she decided to tell the Mewtwo if he was around. He could understand her. She scampered past a Riolu and a Zangoose and before she could lose them, the Riolu called out, _What's the matter, scared of a Meowth?_

Anobe skidded to a stop and glared at the stupid little dog Pokémon. He obviously had too big a head for his own good. _You idiot pup! The armies coming and all you have to say is stupid things like that_?

_The army is coming already?_ The Zangoose asked, black eyes shrinking in horror.

Her trainer jumped and looked down at her. "What did you say?"

Anobe rolled her eyes and spat. _Get your butts in gear you cowards, or else you'll be dodging bullets. _She took off running again to find the pseudo-human Kasmir. She dodged through many pairs of feet and sniffed the air a few times before finding Raquaza standing by a platform. She was calling out psychic Pokémon from their Pokéballs and letting up to three people be teleported at a time. Several psychic Pokémon were already outside of their confines, looking like they had just come back.

_Where is that blasted Mewtwo?_ She grumbled.

An Alakazam replied, _He was going to make sure everyone got out and has been teleporting as much stuff as he can out of the base. What is your business with him?_

_You'll have to do. Can you tell the humans that the army has rung the doorbell?_

The mustached Pokémon looked a little confused. _Say… what?_

Anobe the Pikachu sighed angrily. _Just tell the humans to speed up their teleporting, the army is here._ She scampered back to her trainer to help if the fight started soon. She would be able to do the most damage of her team and the last thing she wanted was to let Kaito get hurt.

…

A gunshot was heard.

Jaylon covered his head with his arms and ducked. The rest of the people waiting to get teleported away did the same without communicating. A few voices screamed in terror.

Jaylon opened his eyes. Where did the shot come from? He thought.

Rin peeked up and looked at Jaylon, eyes filled with fear.

The brown-haired boy patted Hiku gently, "Hiku, can your Kirlia teleport us?" he looked at Vekra as well, "And your Metang? And you Caprico, what about your Slowbro?"

"Sorry, I had Akama forget her teleport attack…" Hiku whimpered. "Bad timing…"

"Metangs can't teleport, and neither can Slowbros. Seriously, why don't you know more about Pokémon?" Vekra snapped while crouching down. "The army is pretty much here if we could hear a gunshot." She glared and looked at the people in front of her. "If we wait, we'll all be too late to escape!"

The people seemed to be getting the same idea and they began to run for the Pokémon. They cried out in fear and panic. Raquaza soon found herself at the end of a mad rush for escape. She tried to calm them, but her voice wasn't heard over the yelling.

"The only way out besides teleporting would be flying Pokémon." Rin said grimly. "And the closest anyone us has to one is Vekra's little Wingull, but he can't even lift Frost."

Caprico shuddered. "I want this to be over… Isn't this a dream?" he quipped.

Shouting and Pokémon attacks could be heard at the main entrance where Kaito and another Trainer stood. There were other trainers set on fighting, but they were stationed all the way around the building.

"Find a Flying Pokémon on the shelf and find a place to release it. If you are still here, you will have to travel by bird Pokémon!" Corinne Martin/Raquaza finally managed to be heard.

The people all began to run and try to get the first Pokémon for themselves. It was a sad sight to behold, to see people in their selfish natures, all trying to save themselves. Jaylon frowned and stood up. "Come on, guys, we should get a flying Pokémon to fly on, but we won't be like these frantic people. We will wait for others to get Pokémon, so we will be seen as-"

"Stop blabbering and get a Pokémon or there will be none left!" Vekra snapped back at him and dragged him forward by the elbow.

Hiku, Caprico, and Rin were already close to getting a flying Pokémon to escape on. However, after they got theirs, there was none left on the shelf. The rest of the people began to panic, as if already thinking they were trapped Pichus.

"Calm down!" Raquaza pleaded with the people. Most of them were janitors, scientists, and other lower working people that had little or no Pokémon. "I didn't think it would come to this, but I will offer to let my Mr. Mime to teleport you. Please stay calm and this will be done as quickly-"

Another gunshot was heard, and this time it was followed by several more. The battle was starting!

Jaylon and Vekra glowered at each other, but Hiku stepped in between them quickly. "Stop it. We can double up on our flying Pokémon, alright?"

The other two nodded and they turned around to find the nearest exit in which to release the flying Pokémon in. It sort of reminded Jaylon of the first day he got his Pokémon, riding on an irritable Skarmory to places unknown. Now it was ending the same way…

Rin found the nearest door and flung it open. It led to a hallway of open windows looking out at Mt. Silver. It was a peaceful place if not for the yelling people releasing the Pokémon and taking to the sky. The five rookies nodded and chose a place to get the Pokémon out.

Caprico made sure all of his Pokémon were in their Pokéballs and that his things were in order before calling out the Pokémon. The red light brought forth a Staravia. He grimaced at the sight of it. "I'm afraid it can only carry me…" he said.

Hiku and Rin looked at the Pokéball and hoped that the flying Pokémon they chose were able to carry two people. They sent out theirs at the same time, revealing a Swellow and Fearow. The only problem was that the Fearow might be able to carry two people, but not the Swellow.

Vekra and Jaylon glared at each other. Just as Jaylon was going to propose a rock-paper-scissors match, the blonde with the Spinda hat closed her eyes and pushed him to the Fearow. "Take the Fearow, I'll find Kaito and fly on his Honchkrow…"

Jaylon frowned. Why? What made Vekra want to do that? Kaito was probably in the midst of a deadly battle, dodging bullets and such. Why try to find him and give Jaylon himself the chance to fly away free?

Caprico and Rin were already wounded on their Staravia and Swellow respectively.

Hiku sat on the Fearow, worry filling her eyes. "Don't be silly, Vekra. Maybe this Fearow can take you as well."

The doors leading to the lobby banged open and Kaito emerged. He had returned all of his Pokémon and was clearly running. Any other people who had been taking off saw him and left in an instant, all but the rookies.

Vekra smiled. "Told you!"

Salamence/Kaito ran forward to the rookies. "What are you waiting for? Fly!"

Caprico and Rin nodded and their birds flapped their wings, taking to the sky. The three Hoenn trainers were left with only one bird. Kaito saw their problem. "Shoot!" he swore and took out his Honchkrow for the Pokéball. It was worn out and apparently wounded. "Darcen can take another passenger, but we can't leave yet." He turned back and growled, "Raquaza and Kasmir are still in there!"

Hiku gasped and jumped off the Fearow. "No!" she exclaimed.

Jaylon could hear the sounds of many feet running for the door. Those couldn't be trainers… the brown-haired boy jumped on the Fearow while Vekra pulled herself up on the large dark/flying type Honchkrow.

"Hiku, get back on the Fearow!" Jaylon yelled.

Hiku yelled back, "Raquaza's done so much for us, I think we should at least try to help!"

Kaito urged his wounded Honchkrow the take to the sky. The black bird took a running start and despite his wounds flew out of the windows and into the still dark sky. But instead of disappearing into a speck in the sky, it hovered, waiting for them.

"Hiku, Kasmir probably has teleported her. Get back over here!" Jaylon yelled, his face flushed with emotion.

Hiku opened the door that was their only defense against the army and out came Kasmir, falling to the ground. He was in Mewtwo form and covered in blood. Hiku forgot about closing or locking the door and bent over the Pokémon. "Are you ok?" she asked, her voice loud.

Kasmir opened his eyes and shakily stood d to his feet. "I sensed that you were still in here… then they found me…"

"Get to the Fearow!" Jaylon yelled. The Fearow could feel the danger and was about to fly off without the other two.

Kasmir floated with his psychic powers towards Jaylon as fast as he could. Hiku ran behind him to the safety of escape. The doors flew open and a mass of men in military uniforms crouched and aimed their long guns at them.

"Fly!" Jaylon yelled to the Fearow while holding out his hand to Hiku. Just a little closer…!

Kasmir turned around in midair and launched a weak aura sphere at then, buying a fraction of time. The Mewtwo floated as fast as he could out of the range of fire, but it wasn't fast enough. Hiku reached her hand into Jaylon's.

The men fired their guns…


	40. Chapter 40, The End

**Chapter 40**

The sound of the guns seemed to echo in Jaylon's head. He reached out for Hiku's hand while holding onto the moving Fearow. The guns spat out fire and sound loud enough for him to want to shove his fingers into his ears. The gunshots… where did they hit?

Hiku's hand fell into his hand, but didn't clasp it. In a sort of slow-motion, she fell forward, no longer able to control her feet. _NO! This can't be happening!_ Jaylon thought desperately as he felt Hiku falling forward. He let go of the Fearow with his other hand and pulled on Hiku's hand to haul her on the bird Pokémon.

The men with the guns reloaded their guns and took aim again. Kasmir, who had received minor injuries from that round, held out his three-fingered hand and willed what little psychic power he had to twist the weapons beyond repair… or at least something…

Jaylon gripped the Fearow with his feet and pulled Hiku up half-way to the bird's back. His heart sank as he saw Hiku's eyes begin to close. "NO! HIKU!" He yelled. The Fearow cried out and took to the air, soaring out the window. Jaylon fought to bring Hiku up all the way on the bird, but was losing his grip.

Another round of fire went off, but none of the bullets hit Jaylon, his Fearow, or Kasmir. They must have been disabled or reflected by Kasmir's attack. The Mewtwo floated up beside the Fearow and pushed Hiku up on the bird's back to help Jaylon. His purple eyes widened as he noticed through the dark that Hiku wasn't moving.

Jaylon held Hiku to his chest. "Come on, Hiku, you're ok… You're ok…" he muttered to her. He didn't know why, but he began to cry. He knew in his heart that she couldn't be dead, and yet, he was crying. How could she somehow end up like this? She can't die! She had already dodged death once before, couldn't she do it again?

The bloody Mewtwo, hovering by the Fearow stared at Hiku, his face falling.

"What is it?" Jaylon found his voice watery.

Kasmir closed his eyes. "I'm worn out, but your Fearow is barely holding you two up…" he said as an excuse. His purple skin seemed to glow slightly in the darkness.

Jaylon continued to hug Hiku, urging her to open her eyes. Why wasn't she moving? Was she breathing? It was hard to tell while flying on a Fearow's back. "Come on, Hiku…" he felt himself sob again, as if something already told him what he didn't want to accept. He looked again at Kasmir. "You can see aura, right? Is she ok?"

"What happened?" Kaito and Vekra flew closer on the Honchkrow named Darcen. The two trainers could barely see the form of Hiku lying in Jaylon's arms.

Kasmir pushed himself to use more of his dwindling psychic powers. "Come on, we have to get away from here… they've got cannons…" he grunted and held a bloody wound on his side.

"Hiku, what happened?" Vekra called through the dark and wind.

"She's hurt…" Jaylon yelled back.

The army was showing that they hadn't given up on eliminating them yet. Booms and flashes of gunpowder sounded and flashed from the ground and the air whistled with projectiles. Jaylon didn't really care at the moment about that. He wanted to see Hiku wake up. Why was she asleep at a time like this? "Hiku please…" he pleaded and hugged her closer. "Think of all the times we had… we helped each other out a lot. I can't imagine what my trainer life would've been like without you… Come on, Hiku, please tell me that you are ok…"

"Please, Jaylon," Kasmir said in a strained tone, "keep quiet… they might aim at us."

"Is she going to be ok, Aura Guardian?" Jaylon replied in a louder pitch.

Kasmir flinched, a sure sign that not everything was well. "Once we get into a safe place, we can try to help…"

"You're lying!" Jaylon couldn't help shouting.

"In the air on the run from cannons is not the best time to tell you…" Kasmir retorted. "Thanks to my mistake, I've let all of you down… If only I had sensed them coming sooner and gotten everyone out before this…" he closed his purple eyes and continued flying by Jaylon's Fearow.

Vekra and Kaito couldn't find words to say. It was as if the sentence was already pronounced on Hiku… But how…?

After a few more minutes of cannon fire and ruches of air around them, the flying became much easier. The night was still thick and too gloomy to make out the land features. They could only guess that they were flying over Kanto now on the way to Sinnoh. The journey continued quietly. No one spoke, despite the overwhelming amount of confusion and anxiety. Hiku still hadn't stirred, and Jaylon's nerves were taut. With the addition of a solemn Kasmir, things weren't good.

It felt like ages before the sun ventured to warm up the sky. Kaito, Vekra, Jaylon, and Kasmir were all obliged to watch the orange orb slowly rise above the horizon. It was as if the sun was a sign that things were going to start looking up. Even though it was a false hope, it still brought comfort and awe to the beholders.

In the new light, Jaylon looked at Hiku. Her eyes were closed, Mudkip hat slightly askew, and her mouth was open slightly. The brown-haired boy felt her back hesitantly, as if patting her would wake her up. He regretted doing so. Her back was ragged from bullet wounds and blood. Jaylon looked at his bloody hand and felt immensely sick.

"Land now! I can't… We have to land!" he choked out, cold sweat beading on his face. He slowly clenched his bloodied hand as if closing in on the idea that someone he knew was never going to be there again.

"We are still in Kanto, we can't land until we clear the ocean." Kasmir replied sternly.

"I don't care, we have to land! I'm going to be sick and Hiku needs medical help as soon as we can give it to her…!" the boy yelled back.

"Emotions can cloud the judgment. Trust me, I understand your loss…" the Mewtwo answered back. "It won't take very much longer until we reach Sinnoh and Iron Island. Wait until then." Kasmir sighed and closed his eyes, floating with as little energy he could.

Vekra saw Hiku and gasped. She covered her mouth and looked away. Kaito heaved a deep sigh and shook his head at the sight of Hiku's wounds. They both saw and understood as well. Jaylon didn't want to accept it thigh. How could they accept this so quickly? She had almost died by the trainer snatchers, she could survive this! He fought with himself over this fact of Hiku. She had to be alive, but she wasn't moving. Could she be in a coma? Words couldn't express his thoughts.

The continent of Sinnoh was soon spotted, and after flying over Canalave City, they flew over a stretch of sea before finding a little island. Darcen the Honchkrow and the Fearow began to bank and descend to the rocky ground. As they drew closer a few figures could be seen standing, waving their arms and calling up to them.

"Kasmir, why were you in the base when we were still in there?" Vekra asked over the wind as they descended. "Did Raquaza get out?"

"Yeah, she's probably waiting for us right now. I can back because I felt that there were still a few people left and I didn't want to miss anyone…" the Mewtwo replied, clearly unsteady in the air. "I teleported way too much… I should thank Hiku for saving me from that firing squad… I thought I was a goner…"

The island loomed closer. Kaito glanced at the Mewtwo in his true form and asked, "You ok with being in that form in front of all those people?"

Kasmir nodded. "They'd figure it out eventually…"

The man frowned but said nothing. Kasmir's secret of being a Pokémon was his most cherished achievement. Was he really that depressed to not care about it? "So why Iron Island?" he asked. "Isn't there a lot better selection of places to run to?"

"Raquaza will tell you…" the Mewtwo replied wearily.

With that, the two bird Pokémon and Kasmir landed on the rocks of Iron Island. There were trainers that none of them knew very well welcoming them in, as if they were heroes. That was the last thing Jaylon felt like. The trainers saw the wounded Mewtwo and started chatting amongst themselves in confusion.

Raquaza/Corinne Martin ran through the uneven rocks in her tight Raquaza dress and hugged the Mewtwo, not caring about his blood dirtying her green dress. "You're alive!" She exclaimed. Kasmir weakly hugged her back.

"Raquaza," Jaylon said with a solemn expression on the back of the Fearow, "Hiku… she was hurt…"

The blonde woman released Kasmir from her hug and turned to Jaylon. She nodded seriously and motioned to some trainers standing by. "What are you waiting for? Fetch our medic and quick!"

The people still gave her weird looks over hugging a strange Pokémon and her familiarity with the rookies, but still obeyed her. Corinne walked up to the Fearow and held out her hand. "What happened to her?" she asked with concern written all over her face. It was again so strange that a woman of her status should worry about rookies like them. Then again, she had called them to be illegal trainers in the first place…

"Shot…" Kasmir said with as much energy as he could bear. This was the second day in a row of being wounded by a gun. Frankly he could do without it.

Raquaza felt Hiku's hand and frowned. She tried to get a pulse somewhere else, but continued to frown. She tried to put words together, but didn't seem able to.

The medic, accompanied by his Audino, ran up to the last group of trainers. He took the still form of Hiku from Jaylon's arms and took her to the small tent that served as a portable hospital. Jaylon stared after the medic forlornly.

The Fearow cawed irritably for the rider to get off. Jaylon complied and returned the flying Pokémon in a daze. This whole thing… it couldn't be real, could it?

"Jaylon, Kasmir, come inside the tent as well. You both need attention." The medic called out from the tent. They sadly followed him into the wannabe hospital.

…

Rin, Caprico, Kaito, and Vekra sat on the shore line of Iron Isle, watching the waves wash up and down over the brown rocks. They all were sitting in silence, as if holding their breath for Hiku.

Rin sighed and played with one of her empty Pokéballs. It was terrible that after all this work and training, all they could do was live on a little island. Was that really the fate of all trainers? The blonde girl sighed and pushed her fedora hat on her head firmly. No one was supposed to die in a Pokémon journey… Hiku... How did it happen?

What about the supposed legendary Pokémon of the four regions? Was Dialga just going to stand around while trainers died and people raged against Pokémon? Rin sighed again, repeating a little do-di-doo tune that she said often without thinking.

Something inside her told her that Unova would be much better. She was still a beginning trainer with a whole life before her. Could she really just stay on a little island in hiding? But even though she wanted to go, the trip would be much more fun if her friends could come. Besides, she had already set to memorizing the new Pokémon and levels they evolved at. She admitted that Scraggy and Sewaddle were quite cute… maybe she could train those sorts of Pokémon.

Rin paused and thought about Frost. If she went to Unova and Jaylon didn't her Riolu would never listen to her again. She liked Zangeese, but couldn't bear the thought of asking for Rain, not when her trainer could hear her language. Maybe Frost would be better off with Jaylon… she sighed –an often habit- and continued to think a little too much about how to go about doing that. Maybe in a few days' time she would try to take a boat or bird over to Canalave and take the quickest boat to Unova. She had been saving up money in the bank for a while after all… but she'd have to give away her Riolu before leaving. _Would Jaylon even want Frost? Riolu and Lucario are some of my favorite Pokémon… but I won't ever win Frost's heart. And if Milo Bertram is staying here as well, then Frost can finally make up with his parents_…

"Is there any hope for Hiku?" Vekra said quietly.

Kaito inhaled loudly and leaned back. "I'm afraid I don't think so. She was shot in the back several times, even Pokémon with their vitality couldn't have survived that beating."

Vekra covered her face with her hands and began to cry. Rin, sitting close to her, reached out her hand to pat Vekra's back in comfort. That was all Rin could do, and the lack of any other action made her sigh.

Caprico looked at Kaito and voiced Rin's prior thoughts about Unova. "Do you think Unova is a better place? Can we go there?"

The man codenamed as 'Salamence' replied, "You might be able to pass the security. Thanks to lousy Atri, _I_ can't leave the country."

"If you want to go to Unova, I'll go too…" Rin volunteered to Caprico.

Vekra wiped away her tears and said in a watery voice, "Even if Unova is a better place for trainers, I'll stay here. If Hiku will be buried here…"

"But Vekra, what about your career as a police woman?" Rin asked and lifted her hand from Vekra's back.

The Hoenn girl shook her head. "Maybe after this I'll fight the politicians, but I can't hope to be a law enforcer of a twisted law. There's been too much innocent blood spilled. I want to try to uphold justice. Maybe one day I can come back and topple the rule of Walhoff…"

Kaito nodded. "I'm up for a rebellion. My Pokémon got a little wounded in that fight, but they are my strongest team. They could cause quite the havoc… But we will give it a little while." The man paused and smiled lightly at Vekra. "Did you know what? I think I know where you got your Metang."

"Yeah, Jack got it for me." She replied in a huff. "What does that have to do with anything?"

"Have you met Rukan?" he asked and called out his Metagross. He patted the huge steel-psychic Pokémon and said, "And if you happen to care, Jack works under me."

"What?" Vekra said seriously. "But… you are a respectable Pokémon Trainer. I thought that Jack…"

"What you got involved with was actually a little branch of Raquaza's operations of getting Pokémon to the public. That was a reason you were chosen to be Raquaza's Hoenn trainer."

Vekra paused and frowned. "But why do you bring it up now? I mean, it doesn't help us or Hiku… that was ages ago. Now I can't even walk around with a Pokémon without being shot at. What does it do for us now?"

Kaito shrugged and returned his metal Pokémon. "I guess it doesn't matter. But I thought it was kind of funny how that all worked."

The group paused in awkward silence.

…

Two days later

Hiku's funeral, along with all of the other trainers and Pokémon that had died in the invasion, was given. Any trainer that had a rock or ground-type Pokémon helped out with digging the graves. There was much mourning, as most funerals went. The saddest part perhaps was the fact that they couldn't do much else for the deceased than bury them. The way of life in the Pokémon world as they knew it was changing for the worse for them.

The graves were already filled. Several stones were erected and carved on to designate the deceased. The rookies all stood together, staring at the lump of earth that separated Hiku Turret from the rest of them. Her family also stood weeping by the pile of rocks and dirt.

Rin and Caprico had planned to take off after the funeral and fly to Canalave. They began their goodbyes, "Well, I guess this is goodbye…" the Sinnoh trainer said while wiping her eyes.

Jaylon and Vekra nodded dully.

"It was meeting you two… and Hiku too." The blue-haired boy said evenly.

"I wanted to give you this before I took off, Jaylon…" Rin took in a deep breath and handed him a red and white sphere. "I want Frost to be happy, and he's happy when he's around your Zangoose."

The brown-haired boy frowned as the sphere fell into his hand. "But Frost was your starter Pokémon, don't you…?"

"I think he'll like it a lot better with you." Rin insisted. "Ok, now that that's taken care of, I think we should be going. Be sure to keep in contact with us, that is, if the reception can reach in Unova…" she waved timidly and began to walk away.

Jaylon called out the Riolu. Frost blinked for a second before realizing that he was with Jaylon instead of Rin. He barked a question at the Hoenn trainer. "Lu-lu?"

"I guess you are my Pokémon now…" Jaylon said hesitantly. "It's not that I don't want you, but it's kind of weird for me to take you in."

"Rio?" the blue and black jackal Pokémon turned around and saw the blonde walk off to a Swellow waiting to fly. "Riolu?"

"She gave you to me because she wanted you to be happy…" Jaylon said quietly. "I don't see how living on a little rock in the ocean will be happy."

"Lu…" Frost mumbled while staring after Rin. "Rio, rio…" suddenly he began to glow in the process of evolution. Jaylon jumped back and shielded his eyes from the light. After the light show was over, Jaylon and Vekra saw a Lucario standing before them instead of a Riolu. Suddenly telepathic, Frost tried out his thought communication. _I always told myself that I wouldn't evolve under Rin because all she cared about was me being her favorite Pokémon. But she showed to me that she no longer cared for that…_

Jaylon frowned. He could understand Frost and Rain now! "Frost?"

The Lucario looked at Jaylon and said again, _I gratefully will be your Pokémon, not Rin's._

Vekra looked at Jaylon. "Do you hear what I am?" she asked with a hint of fear. "I'm not crazy, right?"

The boy shook his head and addressed the newly evolved Pokémon, "Ok, fair enough…"

The blonde Hoenn trainer heaved a sigh and watched the two other rookies take to the sky. "There they go. Do you think we are missing out by staying here?"

He shook his head. "No, I couldn't bear going on any Pokémon journey without Hiku. I'll stay here with other trainers running from Walhoff. I couldn't think of going anywhere else. Why don't you want to go?"

Vekra answered, "The same as you, I guess… I mean, I don't want to leave Hiku here, if you get it." she stopped herself. Since when did she talk this nice to Jaylon?

Jaylon's bag twitched and Rain the Zangoose emerged from her Pokéball. She looked amused to see a Lucario standing with them, and was even more curious to recognize it as Frost. "Zangoose?" Frost nodded and went to her side.

Vekra stood by Jaylon and Frost the Lucario stood by Rain the Zangoose. The four watched Rin and Caprico flying south to freedom. But for some reason, it didn't make any of them longing to be with them. Iron Isle would suffice for them. They were dedicated to stay here with the other trainers and live in seclusion. One day they would rise again and trainers would be accepted in Kanto, Johto, Hoenn and Sinnoh. But for now they would wait and get stronger. They had Pokémon to help them and homes to live in.

The blonde stared at Agent J and wondered if she had misjudged him all of this time…

…

**And that's it. Yes, it is a bit depressing, but sometimes the good guys have to wait to win over the overwhelming powers of darkness. I might go back and add some stuff, but I'm just happy to get this done. Thank you for bearing with me.**

**Zangoose-Kira**


End file.
